Structural Engineering Associates
GPR Project in Miami Beach, FL near Miami, FL

Structural Engineering Associates of Miami, FL had a special project in Miami Beach.  S.E.A. needed to determine if there were any air voids beneath a concrete slab at a condo in Miami Beach, FL.  They did some research online and learned that ground penetrating radar can be used to locate voids and has been proved to be very accurate.  They contact Ground Penetrating Radar Systems to discuss the feasibility of the project and setup a survey date for the area to be checked for voids.  Once ground penetrating radar was used that would take the information provided in the survey and report to develop a repair plan and also plot what areas would need to be filled.   Ground Penetrating Radar Systems, Inc. has used their equipment to perform similar surveys with great success and was confident they would be able to provide the results S.E.A was looking for. 

On site GPRS surveyed a large area room (30’x20’) to definitively determine the location of any and all voids under the concrete.  They quickly found, however, that most of the room contained voiding of some degree and marked out the areas that were of greatest concern.  Ground penetrating radar is often used to mark the boundaries of a void as the distinct radar difference between an air void and regular sub grade materials is very noticeable on the computer.  GPR is not, however, able to provide the depth of the void, yet this is easily remedied by drilling small holes in the suspect void areas, as determined by the GPR, and sticking a tape measure down to see the depth.  Once the area was surveyed and the void areas were painted on the surface S.E.A. was able to determine the next course of action.  GPRS also provided a brief report for recording keeping purposes.  Overall the project was a success and the S.E.A. was highly satisfied with the information and data ground penetrating radar was able to provide on their project.

Glenn Zebrowski runs GPRS operations in the South Eastern Florida.  He is based in Ft. Lauderdale, FL and he can be reached at (305)801.4138 or by email at glenn.zebrowski@gp-radar.com. Concrete scanning and surveying is a common application performed by the GPR technicians at GPRS.