Project Overview

Lightweight, high-performance EPS geofoam provides an engineered solution for slope stabilisation, reducing driving forces, and preventing landslides without extensive earthworks.

Slope stabilisation is a critical challenge in civil engineering, affecting highways, railways, residential developments, and coastal infrastructure. Traditional approaches using retaining walls, soil nailing, or deep drainage systems are often costly, time-consuming, and disruptive to surrounding areas.

Molygran’s EPS geofoam solution provides a proven, engineered alternative that reduces the weight of fill material, decreasing driving forces and improving safety margins. This approach has been successfully deployed across Europe and beyond for decades.

Benefits

  • Ultra-Lightweight At approximately 1% the density of soil, geofoam reduces overburden pressure and the driving forces behind slope failure.
  • Rapid Installation Pre-cut blocks are placed quickly without heavy machinery, dramatically reducing project timelines compared to traditional methods.
  • Long-Term Stability EPS geofoam does not decompose, absorb water, or lose compressive strength over time, ensuring permanent slope support.
  • Reduced Transport Costs Lightweight blocks mean fewer truck loads, lower fuel consumption, and significantly reduced carbon emissions during delivery.
  • Minimal Excavation Geofoam fills can be placed with minimal disturbance to existing ground, preserving surrounding vegetation and infrastructure.
  • Engineered to Specification Blocks are manufactured in various densities and sizes to meet specific compressive strength and load-bearing requirements.

The brief The brief

Traditional stabilisation requires deep excavation, heavy machinery, and extensive earthworks, increasing project costs significantly. Site preparation, excavation, and curing times delay project completion and increase labour costs and extending timelines. Heavy machinery and extensive excavation disturb vegetation, disrupt habitats, and increase carbon emissions causing high environmental impact.
EPS geofoam offers a fundamentally different approach by replacing heavy soil with ultra-lightweight fill material.

The solution The solution

At just 1% the weight of conventional fill, geofoam dramatically reduces the driving forces that cause slope failure. This makes it ideal for sites with poor bearing capacity, steep gradients, or proximity to existing structures.
Reducing installation time with pre-cut blocks allows for quick installation without extensive site preparation, completing projects in weeks instead of months. This helps significantly cut project costs. With fewer truck deliveries, less machinery, and faster installation it means significant savings on labour and equipment hire. This also minimises environmental disruption. The lightweight material reduces machinery usage, lowers fuel consumption, and preserves vegetation and surrounding habitats.
Geofoam also helps improve safety margins. By dramatically reducing overburden weight it improves the factor of safety, preventing slope failure on challenging sites.

Geofoam has significantly reduced slope failure. Heavy soil and water load increase driving forces overburdening pressures. Weak soil layers due to low shear strength in clay or silts also reduces resistance. All of this combined with steep slope angle gradients amplifies gravitational forces. EPS geofoam has revolutionised slope stabilisation.