Conference Features State of the Driven Pile: Past, Present & Future

February 16, 2025

Among the closing events of the 2025 PDCA Annual Conference was a star-studded panel discussion among leading voices deep foundations construction. Together, they addressed the conference theme of History and Heritage is Foundational. Conceived by the PDCA Education Committee, this panel brought together seasoned pile driving contractors, a leading industry voice from the US-DOT Federal Highway Administration, and a veteran geotechnical engineer as moderator. For nearly 90 minutes, the panel presented answers and perspectives on the state of the pile driving industry through their professional experiences over several decades.

Meet the panelists: Rusty Signor, Silas Nichols, PE, Brian Heck, Bradford Roberts, PE (moderator), Buck Darling, Clayton Signor, PE (virtual).

PDCA Standing Committee Meetings

The Education Committee, responsible for the State of the Driven Pile panel discussion, was one of eight PDCA Standing Committees which met in abbreviated meeting during the Annual Conference. The gathering of all Committees for back-to-back, shortened meetings was designed to present interested attendees in pursuing a seat on one or more of the important groups which are charged with advancing the driven pile through assigned functions. For instance, The Safety & Environmental Committee, under the Chairmanship of Chris Normand, introduced the new Pile Driving Safety and Environmental Best Management Practices guidebook, which modernized a legacy document that PDCA unveiled several years ago.

Safety Committee Chair Chris Normand debuts new resource Committee meetings.

Associate Member Council Co-Chairs, Pollyanna Cunningham, Diane Fischer	Education Committee Chair Gerry McShane
Communications Committee Chair Jason Moore	Membership Committee Chair Rich Anderson
Chapters Committee Chair Harold Baur	New Florida Chapter leaders Lina Garcia-Martin and Samantha See, introduced during Chapters Committee segment

* Technical Committee Co-Chair Clayton Signor and Steel Sheet Pile Committee Chair David Borger both attended the Standing Committees virtually; they provided attendees with information about the scope of work each of their Committee pursues.

Standing Committee meeting attendees participate in Q&A and discussion with Committee Chairs.

Registration Desk and Timeline Feature

Drawing further on the Conference theme of History and Heritage is Foundational, the Education Committee also developed a corridor-long timeline containing significant dates spanning millennia, which highlighted notable years in which advancements in driven pile construction occurred. This installation provided attendees with plenty of subject-matter fodder throughout the run of the program.

The timeline was the first exhibit conference-goers saw, once passing by the registration desk, en route to the conference auditorium and/or Exhibit Hall. Meantime, PDCA staff Kathy Harper, Marian Phillips and Mason Phillips assisted attendees with any and all Conference registrations, questions, and guidance.