In January, 2022, the PDCA Texas Chapter formally incorporated with a slate of officers and aspirations to affiliate with PDCA. The Board of Directors quickly and enthusiastically voted to bring the regional organization into the international trade association, and the new Chapter has had its figurative foot on the gas ever since. Under the leadership team of President Brandon Bicknell, VP Condon Verble, Treasurer Arjin Dogan, and Secretary Armando Guajardo, the PDCA Texas Chapter hosted two Mixers, a Lunch and Learn and contributed to an industry technical program in Houston. It developed a new logo, launched a quarterly newsletter, established an online form for membership application, and quickly added a membership roster of a Who's Who in the Texas pile driving industry. Ultimately, it has revamped an industry presence in the state which hasn't had an active chapter in several years. 

Building a viable and thriving organization is job for experienced builders, and the leadership team at the Texas Chapter has delivered an important product to the region. But the rapid growth and success did not come without its challenges. Sadly, Treasurer Guajardo (pictured) succumbed to a fatal illness in October, immediately prior to the Chapter's first Lunch and Learn. Recognizing him as a key player in establishing the Chapter, those assembled at the event paused for a moment of silence to honor the significant contributions he made which helped pave the way for the very event they were attending. "Armando was a man of strong character who did not back down to a challenge," said VP Verble. "With these qualities and his good-natured personality, he was highly influential in helping reform the Texas Chapter. We are grateful for his tremendous contributions and will miss his talents moving forward."


 As a new year begins for the PDCA Texas Chapter, members will gather for a January 18th organizational meeting at 6:00 PM CST at the offices of Russell Marine LLC in Channelview. During that gathering, they will vote to elect a new Secretary and Treasurer, as Bicknell and Verble will serve another year at the helm. Members have begun submitting nominations. The January meeting and elections are the start to a new year that will feature a series of activities taking place over the following months. Read the notice to members about the nomination process and 2023 events.

PDCA stands ready to continue providing administrative and other peripheral support to the PDCA Texas Chapter and the other regional Chapters. Thank you for supporting PDCA through membership and participation in these organizations.

 

We periodically visit member offices and oftentimes get surprised to see PDCA exhibited in any number of ways. Sometimes, we will notice a wall-mounted article that published in PileDriver magazine, other times we will see a plaque noting participation in any number of PDCA functions. And on a handful of occasions, we will encounter a full trophy case that includes a variety of PDCA hardware; such was the case in October 2022 when we visited the Baltimore offices of Kokosing Industrial, Inc. There, we observed a large collection of trophies earned from winning entries in several years of The PDCA Project of the Year Awards Program.  

The annual, signature competition among members vying for the judge's nod in the Land, Marine, Earth Retention, and Associate/Engineer categories begins with the new year. Watch your inbox on January 3rd for an announcement about the opening of the submission period for the 2023 PDCA Project of the Year Awards Program, an entry form will accompany that communication. Then, the countdown begins. You will have only until May 5th to complete the entry form, draft the publication-ready narrative, compile a minimum of six hi-res job photos and send it all to PDCA using an electronic file link. Yes, you have plenty of time, but why not check this to-do item off the list early in the year?

PDCA has experienced an upward trajectory in entries over the last several years and we hope that trend continues. No, we don't want a mutiny from our volunteer judges, but we do want to encourage a healthy competition among members that will translate to a continued optimization of the pile driving industry. Thank you in advance for participating in the 2023 PDCA Project of the Year Awards Program!

Please be advised, entry in this members-only program is FREE. If you are not a member, but want to participate, simply enroll in PDCA now. You can learn more about PDCA membership when you CLICK HERE.

The team from Geosciences Testing and Research, Inc. in North Chelmsford, Massachusetts sent a strong contingent of engineers to the Holiday Social.

 

Brad Roberts (right), a Senior Principal at GZA GeoEnvironmental, Inc., joined volunteers at the Holiday Social registration desk to greet attendees and encourage their charitable contributions.

The Foundation & Marine Contractors Association of New England (F&MCA) represents numerous PDCA members on a regional level in the northeastern U.S. The group, nearing 90 years in existence, has an annual tradition of a 'Holiday Social' each December when members and others gather for an evening of networking and dinner with industry colleagues and friends. This year, the geotechnical community got together on Thursday, December 15th at the Revere Hotel - Boston Common Since F&MCA and PDCA share similar missions in representing pile drivers, the New England-regional organization extended, and PDCA accepted, an invitation to the 2022 Holiday Social.  New this year, F&MCA President Bob Tonning encouraged attendees to help those in need; "We will extend holiday cheer to those who need it most by collecting donations at the door in support of Boston-are food banks and shelters," wrote Tonning, in a personal appeal to invitees. Without hesitation, the PDCA Board directed a $250 donation to the charitable effort.

Several PDCA members who also participate in F&MCA, attended the Holiday Social. See who was SPOTTED:

 

---

PDCA thanks the F&MCA and its leadership team for the opportunity to participate in the 2022 event. Here are a few more photos of F&MCA members who were in attendance:

The PDCA South Carolina Chapter encourages interested parties to consider the following invitation from The Citadel Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering for the 2023 ASCE Carolinas Conference, coming to Charleston, SC in April.

Please see the following letter from Dr. Timothy W. Mays, Ph.D., P.E., Professor, and direct any questions to his office:

2023 ASCE Carolinas Conference Our students and faculty have been planning the 2023 ASCE Carolinas Conference since the beginning of 2022. Our website Carolinas Hosted by The Citadel (asce.org) is already up and running, and we are excited about bringing everyone to campus and James Island County Park from April 13-15, 2023. It may sound like a long way off, but we meet weekly to ensure a well-run event that is remembered by everyone involved. We are reaching out to you now for help and financial support that will allow us to reach our goals! Linked to this email are two documents. One is a detailed description of the event for those that are not familiar with this annual competition among schools in the Carolinas. The second is a letter from the students requesting your help with a form you can easily fill out and send back to us. 2023 Carolinas Conference Overview 2023 Carolinas Conference Sponsorship Letter & Form Right now we are looking for the following: Donations - we are excited to offer new levels of donations that are also beneficial to your company. Our highest tiers allow you to "Sponsor" a specific event where only your company will be displayed prominently at the location where the event is being held. We are limited to 10 events so if you want to do this, we have to make it first come first serve. We will recognize ALL DONORS in some fashion as described in the attachment but we will also have booths (for meeting students and other engineers from across the Carolinas) and speaking opportunities for those giving at the higher levels. Please reach out directly to Dr. Mays (timothy.mays@citadel.edu) if you have any questions regarding donations or if you want to reserve an event in your company's name! Judges - Although not binding, volunteering to serve as a judge early will allow us to have adequate plans and redundancy in place for day of event judging. Please have anyone from your company that is willing to serve as a judge email Dr. Mays (timothy.mays@citadel.edu). If a certain day or event is desired, please let us know in the email. The tentative schedule can be found here: Schedule Carolinas (asce.org). Thanks so much for your help with the 2023 Carolinas Conference! We look forward to hearing from you.   Timothy W. Mays, Ph.D., P.E. Professor timothy.mays@citadel.edu 843-813-6884 ‌

 

Paul Armstrong and his son Nathan own and operate South Shore Pile Driving, LLC based in Marshfield, Massachusetts; the family team has grown the pile installation business in a predominantly coastal, residential and private market in New England. Paul says that ongoing beach erosion from increasing storm and tidal activity in the region has prompted many homeowners to move their homes further inland. And because of new state building codes, those homes are required to stand on pile-based foundations. These developments have helped South Shore become a go-to contractor for this growing number of jobs. 

Beach erosion is not limited to the Northeastern U.S., rather it is a reality for the entire Atlantic Coast and even areas of the Great Lakes. In November, The New York Times published a story by reporter Ellen Rosen entitled For Waterfront Homeowners, Moving Can Have a Different Meaning. The article appeared in the November 5th print edition of the paper and chronicled this growing challenge to owners of coastal structures. The national newspaper interviewed Mr. Armstrong in this story and used several quotes from him based on his expertise in this trend of safeguarding waterfront homes through pile-based foundations. READ THE FULL STORY HERE [Paywall].

An important takeaway from this article is that a driven pile foundation is increasingly regarded as the safest and most reliable method to protect structures from natural elements. All members of PDCA benefit from this widespread endorsement of the practice.

RELATED: PileDriver Magazine Issue #6, 2022 distributed this month and carried numerous stories about pile driving and natural disasters. READ THE LATEST MAGAZINE HERE. In this publication, you will see a coastal home on the Cape Cod National Seashore that stands on piles Paul Armstrong installed in 2015. This home was the lone, surviving structure following a violent North Atlantic storm that battered the region in January 2022. Major media organizations published a photo of the home in the storm's aftermath in their coverage of the weather event earlier this year. The team at South Shore Pile Driving, LLC has since driven a new foundation for that home, further inland, as a safeguard from ongoing beach erosion and other oceanfront challenges.

We caught up with Paul and his crew to congratulate them on the great work they are doing for clients of the company, but also the powerful message he has amplified through media about the value and integrity of driven pile-based foundations. Paul is yet another member who's contracting work shows that A Driven Pile...Is a Tested Pile!

In Issue 6 2022 of PileDriver, we learn about Shannon & Wilson's Alaskan case study for designing foundations in areas of high seismicity. Don't miss these articles: PROJECT SPOTLIGHT: New Orleans to Venice Woodpark Floodwall: Providing critical flood protection in Louisiana  Read more PDCA ASSOCIATE MEMBER: JD Fields & Company: A steep growth trajectory and a diverse strategy  Read more NATURAL DISASTERS: Still Standing: If you like your house, put it on driven piles  Read more

Thank you for joining PDCA membership in 2022: (L-R) J. Fletcher Creamer & Son, Inc., Meever USA, BSM Engineering

The PDCA Project of the Year Awards program, the Contractors Foundation Institute: Driven Pile Academy, a new PDCA Texas Chapter, the exclusive PDCA Membership Directory, regional engagement opportunities, the Value Driven Webinar Series, or simply a genuine belief that 'A Driven Pile...Is A Tested Pile' are all among the motivators that brought dozens of new members to PDCA in 2022.  

Thank you to the companies and individuals on the following, unofficial list of new and returning PDCA members in 2022:

Contractors:  Arcola Building Company, Blue Iron Foundation & Shoring, Bowen Engineering Corporation, Coastal Construction & Engineering, Commerce Construction Company, Conti Civil, CS Marine, Cyr's Marine, LLC, J. Fletcher Creamer & Son, Inc., Lynnhaven Marine & Dock, Inc., Mohawk Northeast and RJ Gorman Contracting.

Associates: Apex Steel Pipe & Piling, Bottom Line Equipment, Bull Moose Tube Co., Clydesdale Steel, Contractor's Steel Co., CPS Houston, Inc., Elite Tubular, Hercules Machinery Corporation, Hoffman Equipment, Kahn Steel Co. Inc., Meever USA, OMS Vibro Ozkanlar Grup Makina AS, Scott Equipment Company, THI Pipe & Piling, and Waskey Bridges

Engineering Affiliates: BSM Engineering, Geosyntec Consultants, Inc., Lloyd Engineering, Inc., LMW Engineering Group, LLC, William Kruse PE, Soil and Materials Engineering, Terracon VA and Thomas & Hutton

Other Valued Members: Cohen Seglias Pallas Greenhall & Furman PC, Mystic Safety LLC, and Sergio Alejandro Marin Savatier.

You still have time to join PDCA in 2022; membership is prorated and there are several DAYS left in the year. If you are in the pile driving industry, but not a PDCA member, you should strongly consider supporting driven pile advancement through a new membership starting in January 2023. PDCA is preparing for another highly active year with live engagement opportunities around the U.S., as well as continued virtual engagement on a nearly weekly basis. CLICK HERE to learn about terms and benefits available at PDCA, or please contact us at matt@piledrivers.org to request a Membership Application.

---