To ensure we are not simply ‘forcing’ the results with the heterogeneous
model, comparisons can also be made between the relative resistance
of the heterogeneous layers and those observed on the field. For
example, the cliff face of this profile is predominantly Wessex Marl of medium coherence (~10 MPa). While the majority of the shore
platform is also of this lithology, it is interbedded with more coherent
sandstone beds (N20 MPa). Therefore a qualitative link between the
properties of the cliff and shore platform observed on the field and
that determined through the heterogeneous model can be identified.