July/August 2023 - 65

MATTHEW R. GLISSON, P.E.
DIRECTOR OF TECHNICAL ACTIVITIES
TECHNICAL ACTIVITIES
As many parents with younger kids do
each summer, I was signing my kids up
for our library's summer reading
program a couple of days ago, and
signed myself up for the adult version, too. Doing so started
me looking ahead to our Northern European cruise later this
summer and what books I want to put on my summer reading
list. So far, it has Hold Tight by Harlan Coben, Beneath a Scarlet
Sky by Mark Sullivan and Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World
Designed for Men by Caroline Criado Perez. The last one came
from conversations I had with members of our Women in
Deep Foundations (WiDF) Committee as they were working
on the series of articles on acknowledgement bias that you
read in previous issues of this magazine.
Yes, our committees provide more than technical
publications for reading! They prepare thought-provoking
columns for this magazine and provide recommendations for
books and more. You can read about many committee
activities in a larger-than-normal number of committee
reports on this and the following pages. Due to this extra
number of reports we have in this issue, I want to be sure to
highlight a few items of note.
COMMITTEE CHAIR MATTHEW CONTE, PCP
Helical Piles and Tiebacks
The Helical Piles
and Tiebacks Committee
had a very
eventful 2022.
Helical technology
took a big
step in building
code advancement with general acceptance
into the Los Angeles code. Details
of the specifics and code changes are
forthcoming, but this is a very exciting
development. Committee members
Gary Seider, P.E., Hubbell Power
Systems; Darrin Willis, P.E., Fortified
Engineering Solutions; and Mark
Bryant, EIT, BHATE Geosciences, played
an integral role in this development.
The committee welcomed new
leadership at the start of the year as
Bryant completed his tenure as
committee chair, which included many
committee advancements and the
creation of the successful HPW-DFI
Hel ical Pi les-Tiebacks-Anchors
Tradeshow and Educational Seminar.
Wayne Thompson, P.E., Pen Engineering,
completed his role as committee
vice chair, and Bill Bonekemper, Helical
Pile World, completed his role as
secretary. The committee would like to
extend our sincere gratitude to these
gentlemen for their years of service and
professionalism.
I was appointed as the new committee
chair at DFI's Annual Conference
in National Harbor, Maryland. Brandon
Walter, Earth Contact Products, and
James Davis, P.E., GZA, have been
named vice chairs alongside Gina
Huelsman, Superior North America, as
secretary. The new leadership has
quickly settled in and outlined initial
goals: advancing helical technology
while increasing DFI and committee
membership. The committee continues
to spread the word about the advantages
and capabilities of helical technology
through marketing efforts and
DFI events. The next HPW-DFI Helical
Piles-Tiebacks-Anchors Tradeshow
and Educational Seminar will be held
spring 2025 in New England.
The committee is also focused on a
testing initiative that will use test data
to correlate dynamic and static test
results from helical piles. The use of
dynamic load testing on helical piles
can provide another alternative for
confirming pile capacity on projects.
Most of the currently held data on
helical pile dynamic testing has been
compiled by current and former
committee members.
DEEP FOUNDATIONS * JULY/AUG 2023 * 65
To start with, the 2024 Committee Project Fund (CPF)
request for proposals (RFP) is available. As in previous years,
proposals are due December 1, and most committees require
draft proposals by September 1. Visit
www.dfi.org/cpf to
download the RFP.
We have issued an erratum to the Auguered Cast-in-Place Pile
Manual Third Edition (2016) to clarify installation procedures in
limited-access conditions. Download the updated version of
this publication using the link on the Augered Cast-in-Place
and Drilled Displacement Pile Committee's webpage or
search for it at www.dfi.org/publications/publication-store.
Last, but certainly not least, I am
happy to introduce Renee Fippin, P.E., P.G.,
from Delve Underground as the new cochair
of the Tunneling and Underground
Committee. Please join me in welcoming
her and in thanking outgoing co-chair
James Morrison, P.E., P.Eng., of STV for his
leadership since 2018.
Thanks for including Deep Foundations in your summer
reading. Feel free to send me suggestions for other books I
should add to my reading list, and happy reading!
http://www.dfi.org/cpf http://www.dfi.org/publications/publication-store
July/August 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of July/August 2023
