DS^2: Drilled shaft decision support system

Due to many uncontrollable and often unpredictable factors such as groundwater inflow rate, equipment availability and cost, weather, and various geological details, drilled shaft construction can become highly complex. At present, decisions on how best to install drilled shafts are made by foundation subcontractors, who have most often become experts in construction in local conditions. Unfortunately, the assistance of these field experts is not always easily obtained. Thus, a decision support system called "DS^2" has been developed to assist in the construction of drilled shafts. If used correctly, DS^2 can reduce construction costs by providing a large quantity of expert advice that would otherwise be both difficult and very expensive to obtain. DS-2 is composed of three prototype expert systems that interface with spreadsheet, database, and graphics packages. DS Z uses a heuristic, rule-based, backward-chaining system to analyze geological information, suggest a construction method, prepare a preliminary cost estimate, and suggest key specification items.