Stabilization is the retrofitting of platforms or foundations as constructed for the purpose of improving the bearing capacity

Bearing capacity

In geotechnical engineering, bearing capacity is the capacity of soil to support the loads applied to the ground. The bearing capacity of soil is the maximum average contact pressure between the foundation and the soil which should not produce shear failure in the soil...

 and levelness of the supported building.
Soil failure can occur on a slope, a slope failure or landslide, or in a flat area due to liquefaction

Liquefaction

Liquefaction may refer to:* Liquefaction, the general process of becoming liquid* Soil liquefaction, the process by which sediments become suspended* Liquefaction of gases in physics, chemistry, and thermal engineering* Liquefactive necrosis in pathology...

 of water-saturated sand and/or mud. Generally, deep pilings or foundations

Foundation (architecture)

A foundation is the lowest and supporting layer of a structure. Foundations are generally divided into two categories: shallow foundations and deep foundations.-Shallow foundations:...

 must be driven into solid soil (typically hard mud or sand) or to underlying bedrock

Bedrock

In stratigraphy, bedrock is the native consolidated rock underlying the surface of a terrestrial planet, usually the Earth. Above the bedrock is usually an area of broken and weathered unconsolidated rock in the basal subsoil...

.