Samborondón PROMART Store

Located in the fast-growing Samborondón, Ecuador, the new PROMART Samborondón retail store required a reliable foundation solution over variable and compressible subsurface conditions.

Given the tight construction schedule tied to a planned February 2026 opening, the project team needed a ground improvement approach that could be executed efficiently between May and August 2025, without compromising performance. Key challenges included controlling total and differential settlements for floor slabs and foundations, while maintaining strict adherence to budget and timeline constraints. Close coordination between the developer, design team, and contractor was essential to ensure constructability and seamless execution within a limited timeframe.

To address the site’s very soft, organic soil conditions (up to 17m depth—55 feet), Geopier’️s in-house engineering and design center teams—in collaboration with its local partner and installers in Ecuador (Pivaltec) and Perú (EMIN Geo Estructuras)— implemented a solution based on using a grouted Impact® system.

The Geopier® Grouted Impact® System

The Geopier Grouted Impact® System penetrates caving and organic soils to construct high-stiffness rigid inclusions (RIs) from the bottom up, to depths of over 55 feet. The result is a dense column of aggregate bound with low mobility grout, surrounded by the stiffened matrix soil. The system provides excellent settlement control and allows higher bearing capacities than the site soils could support alone.

This approach provided:

• Increased stiffness of the soil treated with the grouted Impact®pier technology
• Improved bearing capacity for shallow foundations
• Effective control of total and differential settlements beneath footings and slab
• Quick and efficient installation to meet the project schedule

This solution was tailored to meet performance requirements for the foundations and stringent flat floor slab design criteria, as well as constructability constraints—ensuring alignment across all project stakeholders.

The combined expertise of the Geopier® in-house engineering, Pivaltec, and EMIN Geo Estructuras teams, paired with Geopier® systems, enabled more than 1,000 55-footlong grouted Impact® piers to be constructed on schedule, meet stringent floor slab settlement control requirements, and ensure foundation bearing capacity, while providing significant cost savings compared to other options. As a result, the PROMART store in Samborondón, opened successfully and on schedule, in February 2026.