Abstract: Standards for the Geotechnical Investigations of Tall Buildings (JGJ/T120-2017) was effective since February 1, 2018. In the process of applying the standards in the practical engineering projects, it is found that some of the clauses might be ambiguous or might have "error". To understand the intention of the standards, some aspects are discussed in this paper. These aspects are: first, whether terminologies defined in the standard are reasonable or not; second, whether terminologies used in this standard have clear and unique definition in the geotechnical engineering; third, whether the content of the clauses in the standard are reasonable; fourth, whether the clauses in the standard are clearly and well presented; fifth, whether a requirement in different clauses is consistent; and last, whether a requirement in the standard is consistent with the referenced standards. Based on the analysis, it is concluded that some of the clauses have at least one of the issues mentioned above. Improvement suggestions have also proposed in the paper to help further understanding and application of this new standard.

Key words: Tall Buildings, Geotechnical Investigations, Standard Clauses, Discussions