Staying Safe

Best safety practices for deep foundation construction sites By Sarah B. Hood The piling industry is much safer than it once was. Dennis Bell, HSE manager for Northstar Energy Services Inc., recalls how different things used to be, even around the turn of the millennium. “Now, we have designated pile driving units and hydraulic hammers,”he said. “Riggers used to climb the leads, so you had fall issues. Now, if something happens, [the clients supply a] zoom boom platform; we don't climb leads anymore. It's nice to see that the industry has come to a higher level of safety.” But even with the advances, there are still concerns. “The piling construction industry continues to have one of the highest WSIB premium rates in industry [twelfth highest out of 155 rate groups in Ontario],” said Paul Belair, MBA, BASc, CRSP, CHSE, the director of health, safety and environment for Keller Canada. Among the common industry hazards, he lists musculoskeletal injuries, trips and falls, contact with mobile equipment and rigs, injuries from equipment contact with live utilities services and entanglement from rotating parts.

Upgrading SPT Analysis

PDI revamps the hardware and software for their Standard Penetration Test analyzing package By Jim Chliboyko It's one of the rules of using software in your daily life: it'll eventually need to be upgraded. It's why you constantly get notifications from iTunes and Windows and every other app on your phone or every other program on your computer. Recently, U.S.-based Pile Dynamics, Inc. (PDI) revamped both the hardware and software for their Standard Penetration Test (SPT) analyzing package. For many decades, the SPT has been normalized based on the energy that it takes to drive this rod into the ground. There are several ways of assessing energy, many of them are empirical. The SPT Analyzer offers a way of measuring the energy that is better than just estimating empirically.

Dieseko Group Acquires Woltman Piling Equipment

Dieseko Group, producer and supplier of hydraulic vibratory hammers and other foundation equipment, acquires Woltman Piling Equipment, a company located in Giessenburg, Netherlands. Woltman is market leader and producer and supplier of piling equipment. By means of the acquisition, both companies can combine forces and achieve economies of scale, for example by joint purchasing. Clients will benefit from shorter delivery times and new innovations. “The acquisition of Woltman seamlessly fits into our policy. We strive for market leadership for vibratory hammers and want to be the supplier for complete product packages for piling contractors,” said Ton Kraak, CEO of Dieseko Group. “We know Woltman very well as our subsidiary PVE Piling & Drilling Rigs - which was acquired by Dieseko Group in 2014 - has been working together closely with them for several years.” Woltman Piling Equipment will operate as an independent business unit of Dieseko Group in the Benelux region. All employees will remain working within the organization. {fastsocialshare}

North American Precast Concrete Industry Issues Environmental Product Declarations

Precast concrete industry is pleased to announce the release of EPDs in three key precast concrete product categories.

PDCA and PDI, Inc. Hosting Educational Seminar in Mississauga

The Pile Driving Contractors Association (PDCA) and Pile Dynamics, Inc. (PDI) are hosting a Deep Foundation Dynamic Testing and Analysis (DFDTA) course in Mississauga, Ont., June 15 to 17 at the Hilton Toronto Airport Hotel & Suites. Seminar on Deep Foundation Integrity Testing and Wave Equation Analysis Wednesday, June 15, 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Who should attend: Geotechnical, structural and construction engineers; owners, contractors and other professionals involved in the design, construction and specification of deep foundations High Strain Dynamic Foundation Testing Workshop parts 1 & 2 Thursday and Friday, June 16-17, 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Who should attend: Users of the Pile Driving Analyzer® (PDA) system and CAPWAP® software interested in sharpening their skills, engineers, foundation testing professionals, students and professors already familiar with the basic concepts of deep foundation dynamic testing and analysis, professionals who desire to have a basic understanding of the dynamic test results being presented to them, those interested in taking the Dynamic Measurement and Analysis Proficiency Test PDCA will also offer the Dynamic Measurement and Analysis Proficiency Test as part of the seminar/workshop for those who want to test their proficiency in understanding dynamic measurements and analysis. For more information or to register, visit www.piledrivers.org.

New Agents for Soilmec, Leffer GmbH, TEI and Champion Equipment in Eastern Canada

Champion Equipment Sales has retained Equipment Sales & Service Limited (ESS) to serve as agents for Soilmec, Leffer GmbH, TEI and Champion Equipment Company in Eastern Canada. Specifically, ESS will be responsible for sales and service of these product lines throughout Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador.

Going, Going, Gone?

Relief from strict compliance with timelines under builders' liens legislation By Jason E. Roberts, Fillmore Riley With limited exceptions, those who are unpaid for the performance of work, provision of services or delivery of materials to a construction project have the right to register a builder's lien against the legal title of the owner of the land on which the work, services or materials were performed, supplied or delivered. Typically, the lien is registered for the value of the unpaid work, services or materials. Once the lien is proved, the lien claimant may take steps to sell the owner's interest in the land in order to be paid. The provincial builders' liens statutes set out rigid timelines for filing the liens, as well as filing actions to prove the liens, and registering certificates of pending litigation (“CPLs”) against title to the affected land. The rationale for rigid timelines is that the timely administration of the construction lien process provides certainty for lenders who are financing the project, as well as subsequent purchasers of the property, all of whom rely on the accuracy of title information when advancing funds or closing a purchase. For this reason, courts have typically taken a hard line when it comes to compliance with the statutorily imposed timelines. However, two recent decisions from the Alberta courts suggest that strict compliance with these timelines can sometimes be avoided.

Winning with Attitude

Westco Drilling & Piles Ltd. continues its success in deep foundations By Kelly Gray Westco Drilling & Piles Ltd. has been very successful in the drilling and piling industry. The company is committed to delivering quality service with trained, professional personnel that have the skill set to complete any project with their extensive fleet of drilling and piling equipment. Founded in 2004 and based out of Fort Macleod in southern Alberta, Westco Drilling & Piles Ltd. was started by three principals: Trevor Anderson, Derek O'Connor and Theo Van Ee, who wanted to branch out from Westco Construction, a company that builds pre-fabricated steel buildings, and into offering cast-in-place (CIP) services. According to Anderson, with the Fort Macleod firm, Westco Drilling & Piles Ltd. started their new venture with a Texoma 270 pressure digger and has since upgraded and accumulated a fleet of various drill rigs, consisting of Highway FD series drill rigs as well as a Watson drill rig. Both truck and track mounts range in depths of 30 to 80 feet and diameters of 16 to 84 inches.

Strong and Steady

Trottier Piling enjoys staying small and dependable By Jim Chliboyko For Manitoba's Joey Trottier, construction hasn't just been his own lifelong trade; it's more like a family birthright. Trottier, president of Trottier Piling, is a fourth-generation, Winnipeg-based pile driver. He, his father, his grandfather and his great-grandfather were all in the business. In fact, his grandfather was even an inventor of a collapsible rig, back in the 1960s. “My grandpa invented a pile driver,” said Trottier. “I have all the patent papers from the U.S. of the rig. I have one of the rigs here, and that's what my father started with ... We don't use it; it's going to become a decoration.” Sure enough, Trottier eventually sent Piling Canada a scan of blueprints, marked “D. E. Trottier” at the top, entitled Mobile Collapsible Pile Driver, filed on Nov. 23, 1960. There's also a retro, faded Polaroid affixed to the papers; a photo of the black and tomato-red rig in question sits in a bushy, summery (and probably Floridian) compound, with a pickup truck parked off to the side.

Meet a Piling Professional

Andy Sneddon, Graham Piling Services

Bigger and Better

Selix Equipment Inc. is focused on safety and after-sales service By Kim Biggar In less than four years, Ottawa-based Selix Equipment, which supplies drill rigs and consumables to the deep foundation construction market, outgrew the facility where it was launched in 2011, moving in early 2015. Now sharing an 18,000-square-foot space in an industrial park in the city's east end with Shore Machine Works - a provider of welding repairs, fabrication and precision machining services that is also owned by the partners in Selix - the company has more than doubled the area of its old location. In addition to servicing equipment in its shop, Selix's mobile mechanics - its “drill doctors” - repair clients' rock drills, drill rigs and hydraulic rock breakers anywhere in Canada.

A New Era

Innovative Piling Solutions, Saskatchewan's largest piling company, sets its sights on going national to give back to their community By Jess Campbell What's it like to do what you love for a living? There aren't many people who can answer that question honestly; not many people love what they do. Banain Cote, vice president of Innovative Piling Solutions in Martensville, Sask., can answer it with as much honesty as you'd expect from a person who has a true passion for their job. But it wasn't always that way. Growing up, Cote was privy to the hard work and dedication that it takes for a person to be a successful entrepreneur. His parents, Rob and Brenda Cote, owned and operated Active Auger Services Ltd. from 2001 to 2007, growing it to a multi-million dollar company with just 12 employees.

The Next Step

Anchor Shoring Group is acquired by GFL Excavating Corporation - Offering demolition, excavation and shoring services together

DFI Celebrates 40 Years

The Deep Foundations Institute has a diverse membership that encompasses all disciplines of the deep foundations industry

Power from Piling

Cyntech and Keller contribute to the Western Alberta Transmission Line By Jon Waldman The Western Alberta Transmission Line (WATL) was one of the highest impact projects in the Canadian market in the last number of years, and Cyntech Canada was among the companies proud to be part of this monumental effort. As outlined by the Alberta Electric System Operator, there was a stark need for increased electrical supply in the province. As stated by the Operator in a project overview, “Increased demand for electricity in southern and central Alberta is stressing the existing 240 kV system and transmission reinforcement between the Edmonton and Calgary area is required,” and that a pair of high voltage direct current lines were going to be required to maximize efficiency and accommodate long-term growth. Though the planning and approval process began in 2010, it took until the winter of 2013 for the project to commence. On board for the project were AltaLink and SNC-Lavalin. SNC then brought Cyntech on board for the project's south and central portions' foundation work. As Brandon Hindbo, operations manager at Cyntech Canada, says, the two companies had worked together previously on global oil and gas projects, but this would be the first time the two sides collaborated through the former's Transmission and Distribution division.

Powering the Future

Five thousand piles set Manitoba's Keewatinohk converter station on solid foundations By Lily Slain It's been about 2,000 years since the Romans ruled the earth, but their magnificent aqueducts can still be found across Europe; a few are even still in use. If the modern world has a comparable achievement, it might be our hydro corridors. The Romans were transporting water across great distances; now we harness the power of water to create electricity that is transported over hundreds of kilometres. The Romans themselves would have admired contemporary projects like Bipole III, currently underway in Manitoba. It's one of the largest projects of its kind in North America and one of the biggest capital projects that Manitoba Hydro, the province's energy utility, has ever undertaken.

The Unofficial Piling Canada Editor’s Choice Awards

PILING CANADA: THE TOP 10 Some of the best articles that Piling Canada has had to offer over the past decade In the Lester Communications Inc. offices, located in Winnipeg, Man., it's no secret that I love Piling Canada. I've been working at Lester for about five years - the first year in our advertising department and the rest as editorial director for the company. One of my favourite projects in both professional capacities has been Piling Canada. As I'm sure you've figured out, this year marks the 10th anniversary of the magazine, a milestone that I'm extremely excited about.

Meet a Piling Professional

Michael Baxter, BAUER-Pileco