Preface to the current edition

Abstract

Technical Committee 204: "Underground Construction in Soft Ground" of the International Society for Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering (ISSMGE) was first established as TC28 in 1989 to provide a forum for interchange of ideas and discussion amongst representatives from different countries with an active interest in tunnelling and deep excavations in the urban environment. In 1994, under the Chairmanship of Prof. Keiichi Fujita, TC28 organised its first symposium as a satellite event to the ISSMGE International Conference in New Delhi. Since then, the host society of TC28 was handed over from the Japanese Geotechnical Society to the British Geotechnical Society (under the Chairmanship of Prof. Robert Mair), then to the French Geotechnical Society (under the Chairmanship of Prof. Richard Kastner) and then to the Netherlands Geotechnical Society (Prof. Adam Bezuijen is the current Chairman of TC204). Over the years TC28 (and TC204) has always kept its commitment towards publishing cutting edge research and practice concerning geotechnical aspects of the design, construction and analysis of deep excavations, tunnels and large underground structures in the urban environment. Particular emphasis has traditionally been placed on the development, effects and control of ground movements, their interaction with existing structures, mitigation measures and risk management. The success of the New Delhi symposium in 1994 led to the organisation of eight more International Symposia on "Geotechnical Aspects of Underground Construction in Soft Ground" since then. These were held every three years in London (1996), Tokyo (1999), Toulouse (2002), Amsterdam (2005), Shanghai (2008), Rome (2011), Seoul (2014) and Sao Paulo (2017).