ABSTRACT
The development and availability of larger drilling rigs and more efcient impact and vibratory hammers continue to promote the use of new methods to install larger piles to greater depths accompanied by reduced environmental impact. Improved mobility and speed of operation together with in-cab instrumentation and precision setting out with the global positioning system (GPS) have all added to the expansion and reliability of piling operations. Satellite links from the rig to the company ofce allow the foundation designer to monitor installation in difcult environmental conditions where ground investigations have been limited. The amount of data now being produced could eventually lead to the practical application of pile-soil interaction theory to the determination of bearing capacity as the pile is installed.
