Alternative design approach for skirted footings under general combined loading

An approach which include fundamental analysis methods for the design of skirted footings under general combined loading, was analyzed. The use of two-dimensional finite element analysis results with scaling was shown to be a promising alternative to three-dimensional finite analysis for predicting ultimate limit states of circular skirted footings. Current industry guidance for designing offshore foundations was taken from established guidelines for onshore foundation design. The result show that the conventional bearing capacity, on which current industry guidelines are based, does not represent the observed conditions resulting in an oversight of potential load capacity.