Value Engineering (knockouts)

Value Engineering for Soil Stabilization Projects

PRS engineers develop and compare Neoloy® Tough-Cells solutions to improve structural performance, reduce aggregate use, shorten construction time and lower embodied carbon.

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What Value Engineering Means for Your Project

Value engineering evaluates the project as a complete system, not as a single material or line item. With Neoloy® Tough-Cells, this means comparing the original design with an engineered alternative that can reduce imported material, structural thickness and construction effort while meeting the required loading, durability and design life.

Supporting properties, standards and validation are detailed in our Engineering Properties, Geocell Standards and Validation & Research pages.

Engineered Neoloy® Tough-Cells or HDPE Geocells: the Right Choice for Your Project

Choosing the right confinement system is part of value engineering. Neoloy® Tough-Cells are an engineered 3D soil-stabilization system made from Novel Polymeric Alloy (NPA), produced in defined categories, cell sizes and heights. Their key engineering properties are tested and specified according to international standards, including ASTM D8269 and ISO/TR 18228-5, and recognized guidelines such as CROW in the Netherlands.

These defined properties give engineers measurable stiffness and long-term performance values to design with, allowing the configuration to be matched to project loading, environmental conditions and design life. HDPE geocells, often referred to as Soft-Cells, are general-purpose products that are not produced to the same engineered property categories. PRS supplies both, so the recommended solution is based on project requirements rather than a single product.

Engineering Comparison
Engineering Criterion Engineering Basis
Engineering Criterion Design Optimization
Engineering Criterion Typically Recommended For
Engineered Solution Neoloy® Tough-Cells Engineered NPA
Defined categories with stiffness, strength and creep properties tested to international standards.
Category, cell size and cell height selected to match project loads and design life.
Heavy and dynamic loads, high temperatures, long design life and projects where reduced layer thickness drives the savings.
Common Solution HDPE Geocells Soft-Cells
General-purpose; not produced to engineered property categories.
Selected mainly by cell size and height.
Lighter-duty or shorter-term applications.
Engineered Solution Neoloy® Tough-Cells Engineered NPA
Engineering Basis Defined categories with stiffness, strength and creep properties tested to international standards.
Design Optimization Category, cell size and cell height selected to match project loads and design life.
Typically Recommended For Heavy and dynamic loads, high temperatures, long design life and projects where reduced layer thickness drives the savings.
Common Solution HDPE Geocells Soft-Cells
Engineering Basis General-purpose; not produced to engineered property categories.
Design Optimization Selected mainly by cell size and height.
Typically Recommended For Lighter-duty or shorter-term applications.

How Our Value Engineering Process Works

We approach value engineering as a collaboration with your design and project team. Each evaluation follows four steps:

  1. Project evaluation — We review site conditions, subgrade, loading, budget, schedule and the current design basis.
  2. Engineering optmization — We optmize the Neoloy® Tough-Cells configurations — category, cell size and height — or HDPE where appropriate, against the original design using validated design methods and improvement factors. See Design Optimization
  3. Solution recommendation — We recommend the configuration that meets the required performance and design life while optimizing cost, construction time and material use.
  4. Construction support — Where required, we provide installation guidance to help ensure the value-engineered design is built as intended. See Installation for details.

When to involve us: Value engineering offers the greatest flexibility at concept or preliminary design stage, but we also evaluate projects during tender, value-engineering reviews, alternative-design assessments and construction when site conditions require a revised solution.

Where Cellular Confinement Creates the Most Value

The opportunity depends on the asset type and site conditions. The table below summarizes where Neoloy® Tough-Cells typically create the greatest savings.

Load Support Roads · Railways · Ports · Yards · Working Platforms
Value-Engineering Opportunity

Reduce imported aggregate and layer thickness while meeting the required static and dynamic loading, using local or on-site infill where site conditions allow.

Retaining Walls & Earth Stabilization Reinforced Earth · Green Walls · Earth Retention
Value-Engineering Opportunity

Replace conventional wall systems with a green wall solution that is faster to build and has a smaller logistics footprint.

Slopes & Erosion Control Slopes · Embankments · Exposed Ground
Value-Engineering Opportunity

Protect soil structure and reduce erosion on slopes, embankments and exposed ground, holding cover materials in place with less material than conventional armor or lining systems.

Channels & Environmental Protection Channels · Outfalls · Geomembranes · Containment
Value-Engineering Opportunity

Reinforce channel and outfall linings and protect geomembranes and containment barriers, often replacing conventional formwork or reinforcement.

Engineering Performance Behind the Value

Value engineering starts with measurable structural performance. Neoloy® Tough-Cells use defined material properties and validated engineering factors to improve confinement, subgrade support, layer stiffness and long-term performance.

Material Property Elastic Modulus
Min. 450 MPa @ 60°C

High cell stiffness supporting confinement and the engineering factors used in NPA structural design.

Layer Performance Modulus Improvement Factor
Up to 500 % MIF

Quantifies the improvement in reinforced-layer stiffness used in pavement and load-support optimization.

Subgrade Performance Subgrade Improvement Factor
Up to 760 % SIF

Represents improvement in effective subgrade performance, enabling structural optimization over weak ground conditions.

Load Support Bearing Capacity Factor
Up to 400 % Nc

Improved bearing capacity supports demanding static and dynamic loading conditions.

Long-Term Performance Permanent Deformation
Max. 2 % ISO/TR criterion

Strict deformation control supports dimensional stability, heavy-duty performance and long-term structural reliability.

Engineering Validation

Engineering factors are supported by large-scale moving-wheel testing, field testing, standards, published research and correlation between cell properties and system performance.

Engineering That Translates Into Project Value

Neoloy® Tough-Cells are built on an engineering foundation established through international research, large-scale testing, field validation and recognized standards. This work defined the key NPA properties and their relationship to structural performance.

Today, PRS’s Engineering and R&D team continues this development through ongoing testing, research collaboration, design-method refinement and alignment with evolving standards and project requirements.

Project Optimization

What Technical Optimization Can Deliver

Structural Optimization
Up to 75 %
Layer Thickness Reduction

Enabled by Subgrade Improvement Factor (SIF) up to 760%, subject to project-specific design conditions.

Pavement Optimization
Up to 50 %
Asphalt Reduction

Enabled by Modulus Improvement Factor (MIF) up to 500%, where the pavement structure and design allow.

Material Optimization
Up to 100 %
Local / Marginal Materials

Potential use of local, marginal, sand or recycled infill where material properties and project requirements allow.

Lifecycle Performance
1.5–2 ×
Extended Design Life

Observed across implemented projects, with the potential to reduce maintenance frequency and lifecycle intervention.

Optimization potential is project-specific and depends on loading, subgrade conditions, available materials, design requirements and validation.

Your Success Starts Here. Contact Us to Evaluate Neoloy Tough-Cells Solution

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