Ground compaction is a crucial process in engineering, mainly when dealing with granular, cohesion-less soils that lie deep beneath the ground surface. Fortunately, with modern technology, ground compaction can be done without excavation. Keller-made vibrators are a testament to the advancements in this field, and continuous research and development are still being carried out to develop vibrators that can compact soils with wide grids and depths of up to 50m.

The process involves lowering a vibrator from a crane into the ground, with water jetting providing the necessary penetration. The vibrator’s energy reduces the intergranular forces between soil particles, leading to denser soil as the vibrator is raised in lifts. To compensate for any decrease in soil volumes, sand backfill is poured in from the ground level. The process is repeated until the vibrator is gradually removed and the soil has built up to ground level.

Vibro rigs can be fully instrumented with an onboard data acquisition system, which enables real-time data recording and display of production data such as amperage and lift rate on an in-cab monitor.