PDCA 2025 Design & Installation of Cost-Efficient Piles (DICEP) Conference

September 9-10, 2025

Rosen Shingle Creek | Orlando, Florida

Tuesday, September 9, 2025

6:30 PM 8:00 PM                        PDCA of Florida Golf Awards / DICEP Meet & Greet Reception in Exhibit Hall

Wednesday, September 10, 2025

7:00 AM 7:45 AM                       DICEP Registration Opens / Breakfast in Exhibit Hall

7:45 AM 8:00 AM                       DICEP Opening Ceremony & Welcome Announcements

8:00 AM 10:00 AM                     Part I: Foundations of Cost-Effective Driven-Pile Design: Framework Overview & Support Cost
Van E. Komurka, P.E., BC.GE, GRL Engineers, Inc.
This session provides an essential framework for achieving cost-effective outcomes in driven-pile projects by focusing on the interplay between design, testing, and installation strategies. Through a framework overview, participants will gain an understanding of key factors that influence foundation performance and project economics, including the selection of pile type, permissible material stresses, and the role of soil/pile set-up in enhancing capacity. The discussion will introduce the concept of Foundation Support Cost, a metric for comparing foundation alternatives on a dollar-per-resistance-unit basis, enabling informed, apples-to-apples evaluations of deep-foundation systems.

Then, the discussion will expand on the application of Foundation Support Cost, providing practical guidance on evaluating pile, pile cap, construction control, and total system costs to select the most economical foundation system. Case studies will demonstrate how support-cost comparisons have led to more cost-effective project decisions.

The session sets the stage for deeper dives into critical strategies for maximizing project efficiency, managing risk, and reducing overall costs--preparing attendees to engage in more detailed analyses of Load Matching and Set-Up techniques in Part II.

10:00 AM 10:30 AM                  Break in Exhibit Hall

10:30 AM 12:30 PM                 Part II: Advanced Strategies for Cost Savings: Load Matching & Set-Up Techniques
Van E. Komurka, P.E., BC.GE, GRL Engineers, Inc.
Building on the foundational concepts of Part I, this session explores advanced methods for enhancing the cost-effectiveness of driven-pile design. Through two focused, in-depth modules, attendees will learn to apply quantitative tools and engineering judgement to optimize project outcomes.

The first module examines Load Matching, a powerful technique to align allowable pile loads with structural support requirements. Participants will learn how to tailor allowable pile loads to varying structural demands across a project, thus avoiding common mismatches that inflate costs and instead achieve efficiency. Next, the session will cover Soil/Pile Set-Up--exploring how time-dependent soil strength gains can be harnessed to increase pile capacity, reduce pile lengths, and lower equipment requirements. Practical approaches to incorporating set-up effects into design and installation planning will be discussed.

If time permits, the session will conclude with quantitative examples of cost impacts, reinforcing the day's lessons and equipping participants to apply these concepts on their own projects.

12:30 PM 1:30 PM                    Lunch with Exhibitors

1:30 PM 2:30 PM                      Design of Driven Piles
Paul Cosentino PhD. P.E., The Inaugural Edward H Kalajian Professor, Florida Institute of Technology (Florida Tech)
During this session you will be exposed to techniques that have classically been used to design driven piles. We will cover piles subjected to downward, upward, and lateral loads along with pile group layout and design. For designing piles to resist downward and upward forces, you will see a basic equation that is reused and modified depending upon the types of soils and rock. Piles subjected to lateral loads are typically designed based on a limiting movement at the surface, while pile group capacities are estimated from several well documented methods.

2:30 PM 3:15 PM                        Engineering and Construction Challenges for Seawalls
Lina Garcia Martin, P.E., Vice President of Engineering, Orion Marine Group
This presentation explores the multifaceted engineering and construction challenges involved in designing and building seawalls and bulkheads in coastal environments. It begins with an overview of site-specific geotechnical concerns, including soil composition, groundwater levels, and foundation strategies in flood-prone zones. Hydraulic and environmental factors such as wave forces, erosion control, and long-term material durability in saltwater conditions are examined in detail. The session also highlights key construction considerations in dynamic coastal zones, emphasizing safety and logistical planning around tides and high-water levels. A comprehensive look at bulkhead design follows, covering their purpose, various structural types, and material selection, along with construction methods like sheet piling and anchoring systems. The presentation concludes with a case study of a successful Florida bulkhead project, offering practical insights into real-world applications.

3:15 PM 3:30 PM                           Break

3:30 PM 4:15 PM                           Getting Design Values from Boring Logs and Geotechnical Reports
David Chapman, President, Blakeslee Arpaia Chapman
Contractors and engineers are tasked with designing earth retention systems or pile foundations with boring logs or geotechnical reports prepared by others. Often, the reports do not include as much information as the Contractor or engineer would like. Rarely does the supplied information contain design values needed by the engineer or contractor. The presenter worked early in his career logging borings, moving to a heavy civil contractor designing and supervising sheeting and piling projects over the last 40 years and will discuss what boring logs tell us, what they should tell us and what they do not tell us. Trying to understand the geotechnical conditions from the borings is often the most time-consuming part of the design process and there is little discussion how to do this. The presenter will discuss looking beyond the N value when reviewing boring logs to develop a better idea of the subsurface conditions and then find design values and parameters.

4:15 PM 5:15 PM                           Effective Driven Piles Practices in the Challenging Geology of Florida
Mohamad H. Hussein, P.E., L.M. ASCE, GRL Engineers, Inc. & Pile Dynamics, Inc.
Florida's unique geologic origins resulted in karst formations and variable subsurface geotechnical conditions that present considerable challenges to the design and construction of foundations. Presented are discussions on the design, installation, specifications, testing, quality control and assurance aspects of driven piles deep foundations applicable to Florida's challenging subsurface conditions and which are widely considered models of innovation for good practices nationwide. Foundation design and construction issues such as subsurface variability, load bearing capacity evaluations, structural integrity assessments, geotechnical time-effects, and sinkhole conditions are discussed and demonstrated with the aid of case histories illustrating the use of driven piles as effective deep foundations solutions.

5:15 PM                                             Conference Closing Announcements