Transportation Curriculum Coordination Council

Pile Driving Inspector's Tutorial

Introduction to Pile Foundations

As we travel over the roadways each day, many of us marvel at the beauty of a downtown, a countryside or a waterway vista as we cross a bridge. We seldom give any thought to what supports all of this development; the foundation systems.

Beneath the surface are layers of sands, clays and limestone. Naturally, the best material to build on is the limestone, but sometimes the limestone, or as more northern states refer to it "bedrock", is too far below the surface to be built on economically. In these instances, foundation systems are constructed that will reach it or will enable structures to stand without reaching it.

A foundation is the structure built to transfer the weight of the structure to the material below. Foundations come in many different types and sizes, ranging from shallow spread footings to the topic of this tutorial, Piles.

A special tour of Underground Any town USA has been arranged for you so that you might become a little more familiar with foundations.

The goal of this tutorial is to familiarize you with:

• The Pile Driving System, including pile types, hammers, cushions, jets, augers, leads, etc.
• The Pile Driving Process, the evolution from plans to installing pile foundation systems
• And most importantly, your role as an Inspector ensuring that the pile foundation is installed in accordance with the plans and specifications.