Pile Driving Industry Retirees Honored in South Carolina

August 23, 2022

(Left to right: Michael McCormick, Don Surrency, John King, Sonny DuPre, John Skinner)

A 2022 objective of the South Carolina Chapter of PDCA and current president John King is to recognize the contributions of some of the region's important figures who spent impactful careers serving the Charleston market and helped shape the driven pile industry into what it is today. During its third quarter dinner meeting on August 18th, President King arranged for four retirees to receive The Harry Robbins Chapter Award. Three contractors and one supplier were introduced by a family member or close colleague and presented with a unique pile driving rig trophy to signify their contributions to the industry. Those recognized in August included Sonny DuPre who followed his father at the helm of Cape Romain Contractors, Michael McCormick who was a co-founder of Pile Drivers, Inc., John Skinner who retired after a long career at Parker Marine Contracting in 2021, and Don Surrency who was a leading representative at Koppers, Inc. for more than 30 years. PDCA thanks the four gentlemen for helping shape the modern, driven pile industry into what it is today.

In addition to the special recognitions, Chapter members and friends gathered at the Town & Country Inn & Suites in Charleston for a networking reception, buffet dinner featuring various southern cuisine favorites, a Chapter business update and a feature presentation from Kathy Harper of the PDCA national office in Orange Park, Florida. There, Kathy is the Manager of Education and Events; she provided dinner attendees with a 'behind the scenes' look at the evolution of such industry staples as the PDCA Annual Conference, DICEP, the PDCA Value Driven Webinar Series and Contractors Foundation Institute: Driven Pile Academy, among others. Members from the South Carolina Chapter are active in national level PDCA events and enjoyed the opportunity to learn more about their origin.