General Contractors & Owners

Ductile Iron Pile Advantages:

High-capacity deep foundation options for difficult sites with constrained access or low headroom.
Lower cost alternative to traditional drilled micropiles, helical piers, and low-headroom deep foundations.
Faster installation than many foundation options to reduce foundation schedules.
Small footprint equipment that won’t consume the jobsite or building pad.
Value engineering solutions and cost estimates can be provided within one week.
Readily available pile materials can be delivered within one week.
Having a choice of geotechnical contractors provides the best-value option that works within project budgets.

FOUNDATION OPTIONS:

General Contractors, Construction Managers and Owner/Developers have many options to consider when selecting the right deep foundation system for a project. Often times, deep foundation needs are unexpected, don’t fit in the project’s schedule and come at costs that don’t meet the project’s budget. Deep foundations also require additional safety measures with the need for substantial working platforms to support large equipment and issues with overhead or rotating equipment. Beyond traditional piling systems, contractors and owners are enjoying the benefits of an alternative solution. The Ductile Iron Pile system is a versatile, low-vibration driven piling solution that offers a high-value alternative for projects that would normally require micropiles, helical piles, or other deep foundations on projects with constrained site access, low-headroom, vibration concerns and many other challenges.

SOLVING SITE CHALLENGES:

Deep foundations can be particularly difficult on challenging sites that have constrained access, limited laydown areas, variable grades, vibration concerns with adjacent structures or low-headroom challenges. General Contractors prefer Ductile Iron Piles on constrained sites since the piles are installed with a medium-sized excavator that doesn’t consume the jobsite and does not require substantial working pad preparations compared with heavy, tall piling rigs. Foundation schedules are often accelerated compared with other systems with installation rates ranging from 400 to more than 1,000 ft/crew day. The small diameter piles are easily installed adjacent to or inside existing structures with minimal vibrations. Efficient installations can occur with a minimum of 18 feet of vertical headroom, allowing new deep foundations to be constructed inside existing high-bay structures.

DELIVERING VALUE:

General Contractors prefer Ductile Iron Piles compared to traditional drilled micropiles of similar capacity due to the lower cost, faster installation schedule, and clean operation. Delivering higher capacities, Ductile Iron Piles are used to reduce helical pile quantities and risks for unexpected poor site performance. DuroTerra engineers are available to help General Contractors by providing up-front value engineering alternatives. With a large inventory of commonly used pile sizes, DuroTerra can usually provide pile materials to your jobsite within one week of project approval. Lastly, Ductile Iron Piles can be installed by most qualified geotechnical contractors, allowing for high-value Ductile Iron Pile systems to be constructed within the owner’s budget.

Interested in learning more about the types of projects well-suited for Ductile Iron Piles? Do you have a project where you’d like to evaluate feasibility? Check out the following links and contact us.