A Pile of News: June 2022
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
Originally sent June 1, 2022
From the Association & Chapters
Mark your calendars!
 
Chapter news:
  • PDCA Pacific Coast Chapter scholarship shoot: On April 29, the 2022 event brought more than 150 participants to Bird’s Landing Hunting Preserve in California and generated nearly $30K to the chapter scholarship fund. See who won competitive shooting honors and event PHOTOS.
  • PDCA South Carolina Chapter dinner meeting: On May 12, industry veterans Jim Duffy and Mike Elliott were recognized for contributions to pile driving over their long careers in engineering, equipment and materials. Scott Nigels presented on PC/PS concrete piles. See the PHOTOS.
  • PDCA Northeast Chapter professional development course: On May 18, George Harms Construction Co. in New Jersey hosted attendees to hear from Jennifer Peirce Brandt, P.E., John Peirce, III, P.E.of Peirce Engineering and David Borger, P.E., Kurt Levin, P.E. of Nucor Skyline on technical matters. 

Industry news:
GeoQuip Inc. Foundation Construction Equipment, you are this month’s winner!
Send an email to marian@piledrivers.org before the end of June to claim your prize!
News from PDCA Companies
Acquisitions & expansions:

Governmental relations:
  • Clark Construction earned laudatory statements from Gov. Youngkin (VA) and Gov. Hogan (MD) about its regional significance as it grows in the Mid-Atlantic. A new McLean, VA office opens this fall, Richmond follows and its Baltimore space will double. Bipartisan consensus is rare in 2022!
  • PRECO-MSE hosted Mayor Pilon at its suburban Montreal HQ to announce implementation of a Termacao TREE lithium-ion battery unit, a move toward decarbonization in construction.

Recognitions:

Giving back:

Anniversary:
  • Macro Enterprises LTD reaches 45 years in continuous operation. The Massapequa, NY-based pile driving contractor proudly drives timber, pipe, H-piles and more from its Long Island HQ.
People on the Move
Transitions:
  • J.W. Lodge promoted to CEO at Lodge Lumber Co. in Houston.
  • Tommi Lehtonen appointed new CEO at Junttan.
  • David Kesser becomes president at PVE Equipment USA, based in Jacksonville, FL.
  • Jeff Dwyer named first CEO for Contractors Steel Co. parent UPG.
  • Odaly Sanchoyerto elevates to FT project manager at ASAP Group in Miami.
  • Elyse Simon named new sales support-accounting staff at J.D. Fields & Company, Inc.
  • Chuck Sornberger, P.E. moves to Meever USA Florida office for engineering, sales support.
  • Nikeisha Balakrishnan graduates Purdue, secures design engineer job at Nucor.
  • Ryan Moyers, P.E. joins the team at CRW Engineering in Anchorage, AK.
  • Spiro Kola moves from intern to project manager at ECS Limited upon graduation from UF.
  • Dan Russell elevates from technical services to sales engineer at GEOKON.
  • Kathy Jarupakorn, Brandon Hansen onboard as staff engineers at PND Engineers, Anchorage.
  • Pete Castro, P.E., G.E. joins Shannon & Wilson, Inc. in Portland as senior geotech.
  • Mikaelah Hill parlays summer ’21 internship into a full-time position as engineer at S&ME, Inc.
  • Justin Hatton, Bryan Pina, Kaylee Ellerbe, Justin Calcagino, all new to Southern Earth Sciences.

Recognitions:
  • Mike Terrell reaches 35 years at Scott Bridge Company, Inc. in Opelika, AL.
  • A pair of industry veterans celebrate 30 years at New Jersey-based Conti Enterprises, Inc.
  • Ernie Nillen reaches his 40-year anniversary at Southern Earth Sciences’ New Orleans office; colleagues Danny Keller makes 32 years, Shane George with 28 and Larry Jackson has 24.
  • Branyon Dodds, Kevin Tyler inked deals to continue employment with Company Wrench as part of a unique graduation “signing day” event held at an Ohio workforce center. Their employer was an event sponsor – is it a surprise that it was also named a local Large Business of the Year?
  • Larry Melton, MBA, PMP is vice chair of the Dewberry BOD; he was recently inducted into the 10th Annual Academy of Engineers at The Citadel where he graduated engineering school in 1984.
  • James Williams, P.E. and Patrick Thurmond, P.E. of Eustis Engineering volunteered at Mudfest, a program of the Louisiana Children’s Museum where kids learn about construction resiliency and driven pile foundations through interaction at mud stations.
  • Shreyansh Paliwal, EIT is a young engineer of the year; James Bristow, P.E. earns ASCE distinction for community involvement. The gentlemen hail from Universal Engineering Sciences in Nevada.
  • Joe Novak, a project engineer at GeoStructures, Inc., just passed the P.E. exam.
  • Matt Smith of GZE GeoEnvironmental secures a P.E. license in the state of Vermont.
  • Kenneth Chappell, a USMC combat veteran of Operation Enduring Freedom and recent Citadel grad, earned his P.E. in South Carolina; he works for Infrastructure Consulting & Engineering.
On the Job
Baker GCI shares that its deep foundations team performed a test pile program for (two) 800-ton static load tests; it’s part of the VG Plaquemines LNG project.
 
Blue Iron Foundations & Shoring uses its Giken silent piler to install 60 feet-long sheets, 45 feet below sea level in Norfolk, VA for a component of the expansive Hampton Roads Bay Bridge Tunnel project.
 
Foundation Constructors, Inc. uses a PileCo D 36-32 hammer to drive 111 each 12-inch by 60-foot PS/PC concrete piles at Coronado Island to build a new facility at the Navy base in San Diego.
 
Norwalk Marine Contractors makes progress on a new residential development in Stamford, CT. Crews have used their iconic Junttan rig to install timber piles for timber inclusions.
 
Orion Marine Group unleashes an extended American Piledriving Equipment 10-4 hydraulic impact hammer to drive a toe wall piling nearly 50 feet below the water surface at Seattle’s port.
 
Pacific Pile & Marine secures new contract to rebuild Pier 58 on Seattle’s waterfront; local rep Nam Nguyen of J.D. Fields & Company will supply the steel pipe pile for this high profile marine project.
 
 
Weeks Marine, Inc. completed infrastructure restoration at Ellis Island. Scope included refurbishment of a ferry slip, a new timber fender system and seawall fortification.
 
Hammer and Steel, Inc. equips the growing solar installation market; its SPD PM 85 solar attachment was spotted at a central Maine quarry driving more than 2,500 pilings for future energy generation.
 
Junttan USA puts its first hammer in Guam for the Hawaiian Dredging Construction Company/Weeks Marine subsidiary JV that is engaged to repair, modernize various structures on the U.S. Navy base.
 
CPS Houston, Inc. provided the fabrication, coating and delivery of 167 feet long, 18x1-inch pipe piles for business partners Kingwood Pipe and Russell Marine LLC. For perspective, we googled, and learned that 167 feet is equidistant to the combined elevation of the three drops that comprise Niagara Falls.
 
GeoQuip, Inc. supplies a vibro and a PileCo Inc. H35/50VT for pile installation at a new interchange off I-75 South of Tampa. Chris Lowe provides video of the job site called “Big Bend” in Riverview, FL.
 
ICE-International Construction Equipment dispatched a customized, 110 vibro/extractor to Missouri for pile driving at the I-70 Rocheport Bridge replacement near Columbia. The $240M project will optimize traffic safety with separate eastbound/westbound bridges serving more than 12 million drivers a year.
 
Lloyd Engineering, Inc. is consulting on a timber piling remediation job along the banks of the Mississippi River. The construction team is applying a concrete wrap to the beams.
 
Universal Engineering Sciences consults on pile installation at a Lakeland, FL residential development; timber pilings under concrete slabs were deemed the most cost-effective deep foundation solution.
Media Hits
Construction Dive publishes a roundtable on mental health and construction; among the panelists are SVP-safety Keith McCoy of Balfour Beatty U.S. and safety head Kris Manning at Clark Construction.
 
Crane Equipment Guide tells the story about C.D. Perry and its recent purchase of a Tadano telecrawler. Company VP Tyler Fane is quoted. Tyler, his master mechanic Morgan Waters and crane operator Todd Beauharnoir appear in a photo. An ICE-International Construction Equipment hammer is also spotted.
 
Florida Times-Union updates Hal Jones Contractor jobs: a rebuild of hurricane-damaged Jacksonville Beach Pier, and new riverfront “day docks” in Downtown Jax. Is HJC using Trevor Lawrence’s PR team?
 
Marine Construction Magazine features two senior project engineers at McCarthy in a special section highlighting women in the industry; Jaqueline Martinez and Valeria Zebrowski are quoted in a Q&A.
 
10/12 Industry Report serving the Baton Rouge region publishes comments from Ben LeBlanc, CEO at Patriot Construction & Industrial, LLC; he shares observations on the current business climate.
 
Waterways Journal writes about a new towboat that Canal Barge Company added to its fleet. The vessel name is mv. Lizzie Lan Peus, a salute to the granddaughter of the New Orleans company founder.
 
CNBC: Mad Money host Jim Cramer interviews Nucor CEO Leon Topalian about a new acquisition, C.H.I. Overhead Doors. Maybe with a 25-ton steel purchase, they’ll throw in a new shop door?
 
The Globe and Mail of Toronto publishes a fascinating piece on Samuel Roll Form Group’s parent. The title sets it up: 167 Years, Five Generations, Zero Family Drama: What is Samuel, Son & Co.’s Secret?
Notes from the Field
It’s safer than a casino outing on the Missouri Belle (Ozark, anyone?) – As far as team-building events go, the Trinity Products Ryder Cup was an elaborate and successful event, according to Luke Crump, who played for the winning golf team. Over three days, all staff from both the pipe and new plate divisions gathered in St. Louis for competitive golf along with company fellowship.
 
Steer clear of pile pirates – We detect careful wording in a J.D. Fields & Company social media post. The photo is identified as in the Caribbean, but the author obscures the exact whereabouts of a barge carrying Fields’ full-length steel pipes. This leads us to believe they are mitigating pile piracy danger.
 
What about the dam inspection at the nudist colony? Ask staff at GZA GeoEnvironmental in New Jersey for the punchline. Due to COVID mitigation protocols, the firm officially reopened all offices this spring. The fun committee at the Fairfield, NJ office held theme days for the first week; cornhole, cowboy boots and wisecracks ruled the office suite. Nudist humor was included.
 
A-listers congregate at PDCA-influenced raceway – We told you that Universal Engineering Sciences (UES) consulted on the new Formula One racetrack which held its inaugural race in Miami in May. Celebrities flocked to the event; Michael Jordan, Hailee Steinfield, Ashton Kutcher, Ed Bisono, Patrick Mahomes, David Beckham and Tom Brady, among them. Can F1 compete with NASCAR in the U.S.?
 
We’re still in disbelief that the May Pile was the first newsletter to receive zero “unsubscribes.” Perhaps it just wasn’t worth the click? But thank you. We appreciate your continued readership and content contributions. Without you, this newsletter doesn’t exist. If you’re a regular reader of “A Pile of News” but not a PDCA member, the time to JOIN PDCA is now. We will be introducing all Q2 new members in next month’s edition. Complete the Membership Application and send it in today!
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