Rock Stabilization Terms and Definitions

Catch Bench

A constructed horizontal bench for rock fall containment in a vertical or near vertical rock excavation.

Grout Injection

Injection of grout under pressure to fill voids or cracks.

Gunnite

A cement, aggregate, water mixture that is sprayed using compressed air.

High Yield Anchors

Rock or soil anchors that have high tensile and pull out specifications.

Pentafix System

The Pentafix system is a GeoBrugg system that uses a combination of soil nails and Cable nets to stabilize a soil slope.

Rock Cut

A man made excavation through rock.

Rock Falls

Structures that have been dislodged by man made or natural causes.

Rock Fence

A flexible system for capturing rock, removing the energies created as the rock falls using a braking system and immobilizing the rock.

Rock Remediation

Rock remediation is an industry term which means remediating the rock slope using one or more stabilization techniques.

Rock Slope Instability

Rock slopes that have unstable structures on them or heavily weathered rock slopes.

Rock Stabilization

The application of various techniques to make an unstable rock slope into a stable and safe rock slope.

Shotcrete

A cement, aggregate, and water mixture that is sprayed using compressed air.

Slope Drape

A slope drape is for the control of rockfall using wire mesh, Brugg Netting or other similar products. In the first phase of a slope drape the anchors are installed on the top of the slope. After the contour cable is installed the draping material is secured to the top of the contour cable and then draped over the slope overlapping the rows of draping material to ensure complete coverage of the slope. The rows are then secured together. A slope drape will not stop rock falls but it will control the energies of the falling rock.

Soil Retention

Soil retention as it relates to slope stabilization is the retention of the slope using shotcrete and soil nails, Pentafix system and soil nails, Tecco system and soil nails and other techniques to retain a slope that would otherwise fail.

Spider Excavator

An articulating and adaptable excavator and drill rig specially designed for working in difficult terrain.

Wire Mesh

Wire mesh is used for rock slope protection for draping slopes and for rock catchment systems.