A Pile of News - October 2020

A Pile of News: October 2020
A briefing on news and information from the pile driving contractors, associated manufacturers, construction suppliers and affiliated engineers who comprise the PDCA.
By Matt Bisbee, PDCA
From the Association & Chapters
Be sure to read the latest PileDriver magazine commemorating the 25th anniversary of PDCA! Bring your ideas to the team that develops our publications; consider joining the PDCA Communications Committee, which meets next on Oct. 9. Contact PDCA for more information.
 
PDCA pays you a virtual visit in the Regional Roundtable Series. The FREE, informational programs are scheduled in U.S. localities not presently served by a PDCA chapter. Each one-hour event, delivered through the Zoom platform, is designed for PDCA members and non-members. Remaining events:
*The Regional Roundtable Series updates Member Benefits. (Not a PDCA Member? JOIN TODAY.)
 
The PDCA 2020 Annual Conference Webinar Series resumes next week, and on the first Wednesdays of November and December. Registration is FREE to PDCA members; non-members can attend for $100 per session (ask about applying the registration fee to PDCA membership). Each program is delivered through Zoom and includes Professional Development Hours (PDH) credit. Click the program(s) below for registration; all times Eastern.
 
Deep Foundations Dynamic Testing & Analysis (DFDTA) is scheduled as a live event coming Nov. 1113 in Orlando, FL. It is held in partnership with Pile Dynamics, Inc. Early bird rates available until Oct. 16.
 
Palace intrigue: A serial contributor to A Pile of News is PDCA board member Buck Darling of Herbert F. Darling, Inc. in Buffalo, NY. This publication encourages your news "tips," however the content is largely built on items gleaned from your web and social sites. Curiously, Buck's company has neither. This begs the question, why is he so quick to share news about other PDCA members...is he deflecting our attention? Hmmmm.
Foundation Constructors Inc., you are this month's winner! Send an email to marian@piledrivers.org before the end of October to claim your prize!
News from PDCA Companies
Acquisitions & expansions:  
Anniversaries:
  • Golder started 60 years ago in a small apartment and today is a global engineering brand.
  • Holland LP of Crete, IL marks 85 years serving the rail industry.
 
Governmental relations:
Boh Bros. Construction of New Orleans, The Great Lakes Construction Company of Hinckley, OH and Vortex Marine Construction of Antioch, CA are among signatories of a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell calling for stabilization in the multiemployer pension system.
 
Nucor Tubular Products hosted U.S. Secretary of Labor Eugene Scalia for a tour of its Chicago facility.
 
ECS Limited's south region manager Benjamin Temple was part of a delegation making a special delivery from ACEC-SC PAC to South Carolina State Senator Scott Talley.
 
Recognitions:
Atlas Foundation Company of Osseo, MN earns "Veteran Owned Business" status due to newly elevated, majority owner Pete Moeller's service in the U.S. Marine Corps.
 
GZA GeoEnvironmental of Boston is among winning collaborators in a Project of the Year Award for the Encore Boston Harbor Project. The luxury hotel has a foundation that includes pre-stressed concrete piles on a remediated, redeveloped Mystic River location, once home to Monsanto.
 
Infrastructure Consulting & Engineering, PLLC of Columbia, SC shares "Best in Class" Award for work on the Gateway Interchange project in Greenville, SC.
 
Projects:
APC Construction of Algiers, LA awarded USACE contract to build a floodwall in New Orleans.
 
Boh Bros. Construction is set to begin a major initiative of the Louisiana DOTD; they received the "notice to proceed" on improvements at the I-10 and I-12 interchange in Baton Rouge.
 
Cajun Industries recently completed a bridge repair on an active, elevated rail line in Biloxi, MS.
 
Cape Romain Contractors of Charleston, SC is cleared to begin construction on the Folly Beach Pier Replacement in November; the project is expected to take 28 months.
 
Corman Kokosing is pictured on the job for an improvement at I-64 near the Richmond, VA airport in the American Cranes & Transport publication (see page 10...nod to Buck Darling).
 
Massman Construction completed a sheet pile dock at the Port of Little Rock in Arkansas; they continue performing infrastructure and site improvements on the project funded by a USDOT TIGER Grant.

Braun Intertec Corporation was tapped by NASA engineers to perform ground penetrating radar services to advance a project related to an aspirational visit to the moon by 2024.
 
Dewberry of Fairfax, VA lands contracts for public infrastructure projects through the New York City Department of Design and Construction and the Lake Dam Road Bridge Replacement in Raleigh, NC.
 
DuroTerra, Haley & Aldrich team up on the Hood Park development in this iconic Boston location.
 
Eustis Engineering recently completed a flood protection project in Jean Lafitte, LA.
 
Fugro wins a five-year contract (IDIQ) with the USACE St. Louis District for nationwide surveying and mapping services to support government owned property.
 
GeoQuip, Inc. supplied the hammers which are presently on-site for the high-profile Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel Expansion Project in coastal Virginia.
 
International project: Golder's team Down Under joins Sydney drivers celebrating what is described as the largest and most complex multi-disciplinary transport infrastructure project in Australia.
 
Giving back:
Ardaman & Associates of Orlando donates engineering services to the "Hero Homes" program, an initiative of Florida homebuilders that gives proceeds of a new home sale to local first responders.
 
Company Wrench, Ltd. sponsored the Community Giving Golf Scramble serving southern Ohio.
 
GROUP Industries, Eustis Engineering and Patriot Construction & Industrial all contributed to damage mitigation efforts in Louisiana following the late-August Category 4 Hurricane Laura.
Look Who Made the News!
ENR Mid-Atlantic published a story on the construction of a new wastewater pumping station in Wilmington, DE; Peirce Engineering designed the shoring, which was built with sheet and H-piles from Nucor Skyline, all driven into place with an International Construction Equipment (ICE) hammer.
 
The Florida Times-Union goes in-depth with Garrett Harrison, the project manager from Hal Jones Contractor in Jacksonville, FL, who leads the construction on the new pier at Jacksonville Beach. Find out how local surfers and a beach-going mom glued to her cell phone have impacted progress.
 
The Troy Record serving upstate New York, was at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for a new seawall. CD Perry & Sons Inc. was general contractor on the "largest infrastructure project ever" in their hometown. Dignitaries from U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer through city leadership participated in the event.
 
St. Charles Herald-Guide.com covers the ribbon cutting for a new pump station in Louisiana; a slew of dignitaries, including U.S. Rep. Garret Graves, attended; Thibodaux-based Sealevel Construction is credited in the DoTD project. Elsewhere, St. MaryNow.com, writes about Sealevel pile driving for the Bayou Chene flood control project.
 
The Post and Courier serving Charleston, SC, noted from a January news release that local contractor Jason Moore of Palmetto Pile Driving elevated to PDCA President in 2020.
 
WCSH 6 & WLBZ 2 TV reports on construction of an underground storage tank in Portland, ME; H.B. Fleming is installing two cofferdams to increase capacity and improve water quality.
 
#NYSEFloorTalk is a video series of the New York Stock Exchange which interviews leading companies in the exchange. Watch Gerdau CFO Harley Scardoelli discuss sustainability.
 
What Do You Do? Podcast features a discussion with Parker Meeks who became president of Infrastructure for TRC Companies in 2018 at 37 years old.
 
The History Channel program "Lost Gold of WWII" features Gerard Moulzolf of AET, Inc. who provides a demonstration of a petrography device.
 
Dewberry CEO Don Stone pens an essay on leadership skills he gained through military service, reflects on his recent induction into The Citadel Academy of Engineers
People on the Move
The monthly round-up:
  • Chris Normand elevates to vice president, Deep Foundations at Cajun Industries in Baton Rouge; also, Rusty DeBarge is introduced as the director of projects
  • Amanda Luong promoted to manager at Powell Foundations, Inc.'s sister company in Ontario
  • Dr. Jussara Tanesi joins American Engineering Testing as a principal engineer in St. Paul, MN
  • Mary Canino is the newest transportation group member at Braun Intertec in Minneapolis
  • Jay Harper, former official with FEMA and Dept. of Homeland Security, named VP at Dewberry
  • John Hill joins ECS Limited as senior engineer in Virginia, William Gaspar named office manager in Fredericksburg, VA. In Florida, Leslie Lawson becomes new marketing manager.
  • Jason Hertz, Caleb Welsh and Justin Smith P.E. are new additions to GeoStructures, Inc.
  • Mary Scarbrough joins S&ME, Inc. as chief human resources officer based in Raleigh, NC
  • Jeff Davis is new national director of federal services in Terracon's Orange County, CA office
  • Radha Swaminathan joins board of directors at TRC Companies, Inc.
  • Angelo Malicsi named instructional designer at Universal Engineering Sciences, Orlando
  • Matt Caskey, P.E. is the new, Memphis-based director of sales for DuroTerra of Boston
  • Gerrit van den Bos named manager of operations at PVE Equipment USA in Jacksonville, FL
 
Recognitions:
 
Our sympathies:
PDCA sends its deepest sympathies to the surviving family and dearest friends and colleagues of the late Doug Wakefield, who spent more than 40 years with Cape Romain Contractors in Charleston, SC.
Field Notes Back in Class Edition
Civics: The newest installation on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. is a Clark Construction-built monument honoring distinguished WWII general and two-term American President Dwight Eisenhower. More Civics: Holes, Inc. of Houston provides an important P.S.A. in advance of November's elections.
 
Geography: In just one week following ESC Steel LLC on social media, we learned our way around the globe. Among the several international locations to which they shipped product were Australia, Nigeria, Abu Dhabi, Mexico and the Philippines (cool bridge, btw).
 
Law: Ingenuity wins! Foundation Constructors, Inc. of Oakley, CA is cleared in federal court, which upheld a lower court's decision that a pile "end plate" in question is not protected by plaintiff's patent.
 
History: D.W. Kozera, Inc. of Baltimore is on the job in central PA and notes several historical events that have taken place near the newly installed test-piles they're evaluating.
 
Literature: Imagine fishing Bristol Bay off Alaska's coast, the hemisphere's most productive waters for Pacific salmon. It's easy to immerse yourself in that scenario; but see how the story might end if you are a civil constructor, like the founders of PND Engineers. To celebrate 40 years in business, the firm published their story in book format. [Read On a Fishing Boat at Sea].
 
Earth science or study hall, we weren't sure: The September Zoom events from GeoEngineers mark six years in a row that the firm hosted free study sessions to aspiring PEs in advance of the PE exam; firm professionals provided attendees an interactive review of the test's geotechnical section.
 
Music Quotable: "It is not the beauty of a building you should look at; it's the construction of the foundation that will stand the test of time." David Allan Coe said it and The Metaphorical Mullet shared it on social media. Regarding the latter, we will "never even call him by his name." 😉
Thanks for reading 2020's 10th installment of A Pile of News; please keep sending and posting your company announcements. And don't forget to include #PDCADriven on your social media, you might be randomly selected to win PDCA merchandise from The PDCA Store.
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Copyright © 2020 Pile Driving Contractors Association, All rights reserved.
You are receiving this email because you are an industry leader in the piling community and may be a member of the Pile Driving Contractors Association.

Posted in A Pile of News PDCA Monthly e-newsletter.

PileDriver Magazine Legal: 30+ Years in Construction Law

30+ Years in Construction Law

 

Where did the time go and what does it teach us about the future?


by James Dash, Carlson Dash, LLC
Chicago, Milwaukee, Pleasant Praire
Originally published in PileDriver magazine, Issue #4 2020, Volume 17, No. 4

[Excerpt] A useful saying that I learned long ago is that: (i) good judgment comes from experience; and (ii) experience comes from bad judgment.

When the PDCA asked me to write a piece about what progress has been made in the last quarter-century plus, it reminded me why it is useful to look at the past: while circumstances change, human behavior is a relative constant, so history experience over a longer period of time is often predictive of the future.  You've probably heard variations of the phrase "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it" (attributed originally to philosopher George Santayana).  Truer words were never spoken.  

I find it hard to believe that I have represented parties in all areas of the construction space for over 30 years now, but perhaps I can relate some of my experience to help the reader make a more informed, and perhaps a better, decision on a matter of importance to him/her. 

Read the full article.




PileDriver Magazine: PDCA Past Presidents in the Round

PileDriver Magazine Exclusive:

Issue 4 2020, Volume 17, No. 4


PDCA's Past Presidents

A roundtable discussion with PDCA's former leaders about the industry, the association and more

[Excerpt] The Pile Driving Contractors Association is celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2020.

John C. Maxwell once said, "A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way and shows the way." This sentiment rings especially true for the executive leadership of PDCA - all contractors, PDCA's presidents work in the trenches of the driven pile industry, recognizing challenges and helping to establish solutions to move forward. 

PDCA invited several past presidents to discuss their experiences leading the association, how they think the industry has changed over the last quarter-century and what they believe PDCA needs to do in the future in order to remain valuable and increasingly beneficial to its members and the driven pile industry at large. [READ full story here.]

Read this insightful discussion with many key players in PDCA's 25-year history in PileDriver magazine, Issue #4, 2020. It includes perspectives from Dave Chapman of Blakeslee, Arpaia & Chapman, Inc. (pictured above, left) who served two separate terms as president and Scott Callaway of Cajun Industries, Inc. (pictured above, right) who led the organization in 2019. Other past presidents who provide input in the wide-ranging discussion include Skip Gardella of Norwalk Marine, Inc. (pictured below, left) who was the first PDCA president; also Buck Darling of Herbert F. Darling, Inc., Rusty Signor of TX Pile, LLC., and Mike Justason, presently at McMaster University (pictured below, right).

    

###

PileDriver Magazine: 25 Years of PDCA

PileDriver magazine:
Celebrating 25 Years of PDCA!
The Anniversary Edition

For 25 years, the Pile Driving Contractors Association (PDCA) has been the leading organization dedicated exclusively to the representation and advancement of the driven pile in deep foundations construction. Make sure to browse this issue of PileDriver magazine which chronicles the organization's history dating back to its formative years in 1994-95. 

There is plenty of nostalgia if that is your pleasure. You will sit in with several of PDCA's Past Presidents who reflect on industry developments and share ideas for continued progress in pile driving. Also, review the contents of a recently unearthed time capsule depicting PDCA's earliest days, including some of the organization names that were considered, logos that printed on letterhead, advertisements that ran in various publications and more.

If you are seeking technical content, new and compelling analyses are available, too. Some of the unique and thought provoking material you will find includes "A Comparison of Factors Affecting the Static Axial Resistance of Drilled and Driven Piles" by Dan Brown, P.E., D.GE., M.ASCE of Dan Brown and Associates on Page 60. Also, you can read "A Legacy of Innovation in Testing" by Ryan Allin, P.E., of Pile Dynamics, Inc. on Page 56. And don't miss "Driving Technology With the Latest Structural Retaining Wall Systems," submitted by the PDCA Steel Sheet Pile Committee on Page 100. There is plenty more shared knowledge available in this issue, so take your copy to your favorite reading spot and enjoy.

Finally, several PDCA members share their own business experiences and evolutions from the past 25 years. Chris Kinley of Foundation Constructors provides a 'look under the hood' at how his California contracting company has pivoted safety operations this year to meet the demands necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Jim Dash of the Carlson Dash law firm in Chicago shares unique perspectives on Construction Law and some of the major developments that have happened since 1995.

The digital edition is available here; if you are a subscriber of the print edition, it should be reaching your mailbox soon. Thank you for your interest in PDCA and please never hesitate to share your thoughts and ideas about this, or any issue of PileDriver magazine. And if you want to submit content for future magazines, we want to hear from you as well. We appreciate your support of PDCA.

Posted in PileDriver Magazine.

Virtual Outreach: Launching the PDCA Regional Roundtable Series

Pile Driving Industry Offered Market-Specific Resources
Through PDCA Regional Roundtable Series

Orange Park, FL (September 2, 2020):  In the absence of live programming for much of 2020, PDCA continues to develop and offer members and the global pile driving industry, opportunities for participation through virtual events; these are designed to facilitate industry engagement, education and professional development.

The PDCA Regional Roundtable Series begins September 18, 2020, making available industry engagement for the regional pile driving community in six different U.S. markets. Each of the six events will be a virtual program offered to PDCA members and non-members for FREE through the Zoom platform (pictured, right). During these one-hour events, PDCA will provide the attendees with the following material:
  • An update to membership on Association activities that close out 2020
    • Annual Conference Webinar Series
    • Deep Foundations Dynamic Testing & Analysis
    • 2021 Membership Directory deadline (September 30th)
    • PDCA Executive Committee and Board of Directors elections
  • An update on the value and benefit of establishing a local Chapter (each of the six events is in a region that has a sizable pile driving industry and could sustain an active PDCA Chapter)
  • An invitation to non-member, webinar participants to join PDCA; this will include a Q&A for those who want to learn about specific Association functions
Each of the six sessions is scheduled for one-hour and is FREE to attend. If you are an active PDCA member, we hope you can drop by the virtual event. If you are not currently a member, but have interest in learning more about PDCA, we encourage you to attend as well.

The schedule for The PDCA Regional Roundtable Series follows; please note, all events are listed with start times in the local time zone. [Please click the event below, for which you wish to register.]
Limited sponsrships are available for each of the events in The PDCA Regional Roundtable Series. Please contact PDCA at (904) 215-4771 or matt@piledrivers.org for more information.

NCCCO Discusses Certification for Pile Driving Rig Operators

A 'Deep Dive' Into the Crane Operator Certification Process

Orange Park, FL (September 3, 2020): The PDCA 2020 Annual Conference Webinar Series continued on Wednesday, September 2nd. During the second installment of the five part series which runs through December, Ms. Toya Brown (pictured) of the National Commission for the Certification of Crane Operators (NCCCO) delivered a presentation detailing the process and benefits a participant can expect while pursuing the OSHA-required, Dedicated Pile Driver Operator certification. 

According to Ms. Brown, an individual who intends to pursue certification must be at least 18 years of age, he/she must comply with NCCCO's substance abuse policy and Code of Ethics, and he/she must pass both a written and practical exam. 

Among the many benefits to an individual or organization that successfully completes the rigorous, NCCCO training and examination include:
  • Reduced risk of loss
  • Fewer accidents
  • More consistent training 
  • Expanded job opportunities for those who work in and around load handling equipment.
To learn more about the NCCCO Dedicated Pile Driver Operator Certification Program, please visit NCCCO's webpage which provides further information and resources. Also, please check back with The PDCA Store which will soon be providing a recorded video of Ms. Brown's September 2nd presentation.

The PDCA 2020 Annual Conference Webinar Series continues on October 7th which will feature a presentation on Working Platforms.

 

A Pile of News - September 2020

 
 
A Pile of News: September 2020
A briefing on news and information from the pile driving contractors, associated manufacturers, construction suppliers and affiliated engineers who comprise the PDCA.
By Matt Bisbee, PDCA
From the Association & Chapters
Despite the challenges 2020 has presented, PDCA continues to provide a full slate of education and professional development opportunities, many in virtual format. Please plan to participate in these upcoming events:
 
Event: The PDCA 2020 Annual Conference Webinar Series, a five-part event offered through Zoom, continues September 2nd, and the first Wednesday each month through December. Registration is FREE to PDCA members; non-members' registration is $100 per session (ask about applying the registration to a new PDCA membership). Each of the following programs offers Professional Development Hours (PDH) credit:

Webinar Series #2 (click to register) Sept. 2, 2020 from 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM EDT
Dedicated Pile Driving Certification Requirements by Toya Brown of NCCCO
Webinar Series #3 (click to register) Oct. 7, 2020 from 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM EDT
Working Platforms Update and Panel Discussion by Peggy Hagerty Duffy and Terry Holman, ADSC; Gerald Verbeek of Allnamics USA moderates panel comprised of PDCA, ADSC and DFI members)
Webinar Series #4 Nov. 4, 2020 from 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM EDT
You Stopped Getting Paid, Now What? by Ryan Maloney, Esq. of Jimmerson Birr
Webinar Series #5 Dec. 2, 2020 from 3:00 PM to 4:30 PM EST
Tilting at Windmills: Don Quixote Meets the International Building Code by Dale Biggers of Boh Brothers Construction
 
Event: Virtual DICEP 2020 takes place Sept. 16-17 and again Sept. 23-24, from 3:00 to 5:00 PM (EDT) each day. Courses will focus on Steel Sheet Pile and Wave Equation. Up to 7.5 PDH available.
 
Event: At this time, Deep Foundations Dynamic Testing & Analysis (DFDTA) is scheduled as a live event coming Nov. 11-13 in Orlando, FL. It is in partnership with PDI, Inc. Early bird rates available until Oct. 16. Special thanks to ASCE-Florida Section, Florida Marine Contractors Association and Florida Transportation Builders Association for marketing support.
 
Read: Watch for the next PileDriver magazine, commemorating the 25th anniversary of PDCA! It features new and unique content including technical analyses, nostalgic conversations and a recently unearthed time capsule.
 
Welcome: Meet new PDCA committee chairs: Rick Kalson, Esq. of the Contracts & Risk Committee and Chris Normand, P.E. of the Safety & Environmental Committee.
 
Join: Sept. 30 is the deadline for your company to be included in the 2021 PDCA Membership Directory, a critical industry reference book. If you are not already a member, join PDCA today; click here to enroll online and ensure your directory listing.
 
Congress: An extension of the current surface transportation law by September 30th may be the last option to continue road and bridge projects in the U.S. Many insiders point to the health crisis as thwarting hopes of a bipartisan reauthorization in 2020.

Help: September is Suicide Prevention Month; PDCA joins with the Construction Industry Alliance for Suicide Prevention to raise awareness of the issue and hopefully help companies avoid a tragedy. Learn what steps you can take in your workplace.
News from PDCA Companies
Recognitions:  
Expansions:
 
Anniversaries:
  • Marking 50 years in the U.S., Liebherr USA unveils a new headquarters. Take a virtual tour of the Newport News, VA facility signifying the company's "long-term focus," according to director Torben Reher.

Governmental relations:
  • U.S. Reps. John Katko (NY) and Joe Wilson (SC) lauded Nucor operations in their respective states during an International Trade Commission hearing where company designee Don Barney advocated keeping trade remedies on some steel imports.
  • Elsewhere, Indiana Congressmen Jim Banks, Drew Ferguson tour Nucor facility in The Hoosier State.
  • Also, Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts names Nucor a recipient of a Developing Youth Talent Initiative grant to introduce manufacturing, engineering careers to students.
  • Eustis Engineering gets a nod from Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards in a proclamation commencing construction on the Bayou Chene floodgate structure.
  • Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan spoke at the virtual graduation of Clark Construction's unique, 2020 Strategic Partnership Program, a program for commercial construction and engineering businesses in seven U.S. cities.
  • Local officials recognize two projects of Thibodeaux, LA-based Sealevel Construction; a lock improvement with 290 timber piles and a flood mitigation job

Scanning other media:
  • The Manitowoc Herald-Times quotes Erich Pitz in a story about Wisconsin's maritime history. Through their work in and around Lake Michigan, McMullen & Pitz Construction has preserved key marine artifacts and prominently display them on company grounds and at nearby public spaces.
  • Engineering News Record details the foundation construction on a Brooklyn, NY building poised to become the Big Apple's tallest building outside Manhattan; Linde Griffith performs the construction with Nucor steel. (h/t Buck Darling)
  • Dixie Contractor magazine examines the Georgia DOT I-85 expansion; among firms credited for involvement in the massive effort is Infrastructure Consulting & Engineering of Columbia, SC.
  • 11 KTVA-TV, Anchorage updates progress on a new terminal at the Port of Alaska. Among the contractors involved the construction is award-winning Pacific Pile & Marine of Seattle.

More News:
It could buy me a boat Blakeslee Arpaia Chapman brought the "stage" for the fourth annual Charles Island Music Festival. They dusted off a spare barge and pushed it into Long Island Sound. The time, labor and resources from the Branfield, CT contractor helped the organization raise $10K for Yale New Haven Children's Hospital while music fans on 500 socially distanced boats enjoyed a daylong concert.

Frontline Heroes In its company publication The Boh Picture, Boh Bros. Construction of New Orleans features a touching tribute to COVID-19 first responders who have family connections to the company.
 

September means back to school Not every student physically returns to a campus, but a Foundation Constructors, Inc. crew from Oakley, CA was spotted diligently working in an outdoor lab at Sonoma State University as they performed a compression test on a grout-injected pile.

Not a summer vacation A crew from Koppers put in long (and hot) hours this summer to rebuild a 500-foot-long rail bridge after the previous one spanning the Kansas-Oklahoma border burned down.

Just another cog in the wheel There's an improved supply chain for U.S.-produced oil leaving Texas; Orion Marine Group assisted in the construction of the newly completed Port of Corpus Christi Gateway Terminal.
 
Floral piles...what? Coming spring '21, Little Island at Pier 55 in New York City. Mueser Rutledge Consulting Engineers performed extensive geotech and marine engineering services to preserve the bulkhead built in the 1890's and designed the concrete piles that look like "tulip pots," which form a unique, elevated park space.
People on the Move
The monthly round-up
  • Leading off, John King makes it a "dirty thirty" at Piledrivers, Inc. in Charleston, SC congratulations on the 'workiversary' to the esteemed PDCA past president!
  • Elsewhere, Orival Thompson, a retired Florida highway patrolman, joins Balfour Beatty as USDOT compliance manager.
  • Steve Henderson is the new director of operations at Cajun Industries, Houston.
  • Dr. Jussara Tanesi joins the Saint Paul, MN office of American Engineering Testing, Inc.
  • John Magnavita named office manager in West Palm Beach at ECS Florida, replacing Corey Nees who transitions to the same role in Baton Rouge; Jason Adams joins the firm's Sunshine State offices.
  • L. Inman Hodges Jr. named to Savannah-based EMC Engineering Services' board of directors.
  • Sean Walsh promoted to engineering manager at New Orleans-based Eustis Engineering. Also, senior inspector John Oubre retires after 29 years, which included missing vacations and working on his 25th wedding anniversary.
  • Neil Churman named senior vice president at TRC Companies' Houston office.
  • Tiffany Harrod, shareholder at Munsch Hardt Kopf & Harr PC, becomes the new chair of the Houston Bar Association Construction Law Section.

Safety first:
Tracie Bergeron and Jake Woods, both of Patriot Construction and Industrial in Duson, LA, are recognized for their ongoing commitment to workplace safety.
 
Jonathan Perou, a crane operator at Sealevel Construction Inc., wins a company poster contest focused on workplace safety. Click here to see his work.

While Aggregate Technologies of Houston received recognition for safety practices, employees Chris Mitchell and Ronnie Thompson, who are veterans, were saluted for their military service.
 
Reading, writing and arithmetic:
Scott Webster of GRL Engineers and a PDCA Executive Committee member co-authored Driveability Analysis Techniques for Offshore Pile Installations with GRL colleague Brent Robinson.
 
Bill Camp of S&ME dispels a preconceived notion about the occurrence of earthquakes in his published article, Earthquake Engineering: How to Design for Earthquakes.
 
Other notes of interest:
Dave Mahoney, executive VP at Dewberry in Fairfax, VA, is appointed to the Construction Industry Round Table's (CIRT) Board of Directors.

Laura Register of Terracon is named the Engineer of the Year by the Nashville Business Journal.
 
Nathan Scalla of Clark Construction, a lymphoma cancer survivor himself, is the 2020 Leukemia & Lymphoma Society National Capitol Area Man of the Year.
  
The future looks bright:
Sara Fayek is awarded the Shannon & Wilson Inc. Richard Frueh Memorial Scholarship to continue her graduate work at Missouri S&T.

Mike Juneau at Premier Geotech and Testing shows students that tests can be fun.

Dermot Fallon of Foundation Constructors is committee chair for the 43rd Annual Construction Industry Boy Scout Lunch-O-Ree; an Eagle Scout himself, he invites your support of the event benefiting Scouts in the San Francisco Bay Area.
 
Babies!
Congratulations to Cecil D. Gassiott, LLC employees Clay and Amy Langston on your baby boy, also Kelly and Lizzy Thompson on your baby girl! What's in the water there? Elsewhere, Panu at Junttan welcomes a baby girl.
 
Condolences:
PDCA sends its deepest sympathies to the family of Mary-Alice Zepeda in Houston. She was a joy to co-workers at Lodge Lumber. A GoFundMe supports her surviving family.
Random notes from the field
The secret of their success "A good contractor is only as good as his/her truck," said no one, ever... except maybe the salesman at this Portland, ME truck dealership who proudly advertises that they have created a "purpose built beast" for H.B. Fleming, Inc.
 
Flotilla for science Someone warn this Universal Engineering Sciences crew to watch for raucous, political boat rallies when drilling pilot holes for a future bridge connecting Tampa and St. Pete. Happy Election Season!

You miss 100% of the shots you don't take ECS Limited principal Alexis Herr authored the proposal for a comprehensive facility upgrade to Hogwarts beginning with ground penetrating radar, up to roof consulting. While still awaiting an agreement, the proposal to the School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, made famous by J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter book series, has no expiration.
 
Quotable: "The more we work together to build up our industry, the better it is for everyone." Mike Moeller of Atlas Foundation Company in Osseo, MN in PileDriver magazine. We couldn't say it better!
Thanks for reading 2020's ninth installment of A Pile of News; please keep sending and posting your company announcements. And don't forget to include #PDCADriven on your social media, you might be randomly selected to win PDCA logo merchandise from The PDCA Store.
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Copyright © 2020 Pile Driving Contractors Association, All rights reserved.
You are receiving this email because you are an industry leader in the piling community and may be a member of the Pile Driving Contractors Association.

Posted in A Pile of News PDCA Monthly e-newsletter.

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