REGIONAL REPORT DFI Europe Once this issue of Deep Foundations is printed, we should all know more about the situation regarding Brexit and the cons equenc e s for the Europe an construction market. At the moment, the industry is unsure about the next steps. We assume that the politicians will be sensible enough not to harm any of the industry partners, neither in the U.K. nor in the EU. We, as DFI Europe, will do our best to continue our excellent relationship with and among all European countries. Infrastructure projects like Grand Paris, Stammstrecke Munich, Metro Brussels or Central Station in Gothenburg, to name only a few, are well underway. But new large-scale projects still need the go-ahead from their respective governments, which can slow down economic growth in the construction sector. Building Information Modeling (BIM) and digitalisation are being pushed in all fields but need more coordination on the European level. DFI Europe is heavily engaged in these topics and supports the initiatives in close coordination with the DFI Project Information Management Systems (PIMS) Committee. New Board Member DFI Europe wel- c ome s B j o e r n Boehle as a new boa rd membe r. Boehle is head of the technical office of Keller Grundbau, B u s i n e s s Un i t Central Europe. He has been involved in several major projects in Europe, including the city ring around Copenhagen (compensation grouting, jet grouting, geotechnical monitoring) and tank terminals in Amsterdam and Rotterdam. He has an excellent network in Europe and is experienced in operation and design. Boehle is a member of the EFFC/DFI Concrete Task Group and the EFFC/DFI Support Fluids Group. As the board attaches great importance to the contact and interaction with owners and major clients, we are looking for owners/major clients with a technical background to become a corresponding member of the board. The intention is to keep these people informed about the activities of DFI Europe and invite them to the meetings of the board when specific topics that concern them are discussed. If you are interested, please contact Monika De Vos, secretary of DFI Europe, at [email protected]. BIM/Digitalisation Committee The BIM/Digitalisation Committee was established at the end of 2017 to promote digitalisation and BIM processes within DFI’s European membership and the wider geotechnical industry in Europe and DFI worldwide. In 2018, a membership survey was undertaken of DFI ’s European members to under- stand the current upt ake of BIM across the different European nations. The survey identi- fied that very few clients are specify- ing BIM processes on their projects and, as a result, BIM appli- cation on projects is low. Digital geotech- nical data is rarely shared between project participants on geotechnical projects. A session at the DFI-EFFC International [email protected] Frank Haehnig President DFI Europe Future initiatives are likely to include guidance for clients to promote the benefits of digital data and BIM to help increase industry uptake. And guidance for members to clarify the roles and responsibilities within BIM to help members prepare and upskill to develop specification guidance on digital data capture for use by members to make client adoption easier and improve consistency in approach. Support Fluids Guide The EFFC and DFI have set up a task group to compile a Guide to Support Fluids for Deep Foundations. DFI Europe board member group. A 1 edition of the guide will be published on the DFI and EFFC websites soon. The guide presents good practice in the use of support f luids for the construction of deep foundations and sets out the latest understanding of support fluids. A field research study is currently ongoing to develop recommendations on acceptance values for bentonite, polymer Jorge Capitao-Mor is a member of this st Chair: Jason Boddy, Arup into the 2 edition of the guide. Student Chapter Conference in Rome last June promoted digitalisation and best practice. The interest in the committee increased, with five new members including increased contractor presence and broader geographic spread. A dialogue started with EFFC, AGS (Associ- ation of Geotechnical & Geoenvironmental Specialists) and FPS (Federation of Piling Specialists) regarding data formats and specifications. and blended fluids that will be incorporated nd In December 2018, the proposal of Prof. Massimo Grisolia, DFI Europe board member, to open a DFI Europe Student Chapter at the Sapienza University of Rome was approved. The student chapter is organized and run by the students with Prof. Paolo Marzano as faculty advisor and liaison with DFI. DFI Europe is supporting this initiative and will find cooperative universities throughout Europe and the world. DEEP FOUNDATIONS • MAR/APR 2019 • 51
