TECHNICAL ACTIVITIES TECHNICAL ACTIVITIES MANAGER MARY ELLEN BRUCE Technical Activities Update Committee Webpages Details on committee projects, members and publications are available through the enhanced Technical Committee webpages on the DFI website at www.dfi.org. Please see the Groups tab to navigate to pages dedicated to the activities of each of DFI’s technical committees, regional chapters, conference organizing committee, operational committees, younger members council and student chapters. All technical committee pages contain the most recent chairman’s report; a roster of committee members with names, companies and contact information; recent news; related publications; other important news; and instructions for joining committees. Please visit these pages frequently as we update information often. New Landslide Chair, Professor Vern Schaefer We are grateful for the continued commitment of Technical Commit- tee chairs and vice chairs. Professor Vern Schaefer of Iowa State University has accepted the position of chair of DFI’s Committee on Deep Foundations for Landslides and Slope Stabilization. Schaefer is currently on sabbatical with the FHWA (Federal Highway Administration) in Washington D.C., and he led the research team preparing the www.GeoTechTools.org system as part of the Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP 2). We thank the outgoing and inaugural chair, Professor Erik Loehr of University of Missouri-Columbia, who did a great job fostering this new committee and initiating its success. We are delighted that Loehr con- tinues his involvement with DFI by accep- ting a position on the Board of Trustees. Committee Liaisons The beginning of the year is always filled with conferences and planning meetings for the geotechnical community. For example, the Transportation Research Board confer- ence (Washington, D.C.), ADSC’s (The International Association of Foundation Drilling) Annual Meeting (Coronado, Calif.), DFI’s Workshop on Levee and Coastal Rehabilitation (Miami, Fla.) and the GeoInstitute’s GeoCongress (Atlanta, Ga.) in February, were opportunities to be involved in the active foundation community. DFI’s members are involved in many other organizations. Knowledge and experience of members involved in other groups can enhance DFI’s understanding of relevant issues and changes in the industry that affect the foundation market and practices. DFI works closely with the technical committees of ADSC (Anchored COMMITTEE CHAIR MIKE MORAN Augered Cast-in-Place Pile Committee The ACIP Pile Committee was active in 2013, and has planned several activities through 2014. Our committee last met at SuperPile 2013 in Minneapolis, Minn., in May and also at the DFI Annual Conference in Phoenix, Ariz., in September. The meetings were well attended and pro- vided a good opportunity for members to stay current with our many ongoing com- mittee activities. The committee organized a seminar in November 2013 in New York City on the design, installation methods and quality control of ACIP piles and drilled displacement (DD) piles. The seminar comprised a morning short course and an afternoon of case histories involving ACIP and DD piles. The seminar closed with a panel discussion on the use of compressed air during augering and the pros and cons of hydraulic fixed mast installation plat- forms versus crane attached augering rigs. The following com- mittee members made this seminar a success: • Matthew Meyer, Langan Engineering and Environmental Services, and past committee chair, spoke about the evolution of the state of practice due to technological advancements and avail- ability of design and installation guidance. He also discussed best practices for quality control and con- struction, and automated monitoring equipment and testing methods. DEEP FOUNDATIONS • MAR/APR 2014 • 71 Earth Retention, Drilled Shafts and the joint ADSC-DFI Micropile Committees), and we have a good understanding of mutual interests and benefits of membership. We welcome members of relevant technical committees in other organizations, e.g., AASHTO (American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials), ACI (American Concrete Institute), ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials), GeoInstitute, USSD (U.S. Society on Dams), and ASDSO (Association of State Dam Safety Officials), to share their experiences by joining a technical committee and serving as a liaison. The goal of having liaisons is to improve communication between committees for our mutual benefit. If you have interest in a liaison position, please contact Mary Ellen Bruce at [email protected].
