NGI (Norwegian Geotechnical Institute) is a leading international centre for research and consulting in the geosciences. NGI develops optimum solutions for society, and offers expertise on the behaviour of soil, rock and snow and their interaction with the natural and built environment.NGI works within the oil, gas and energy, building and construction, transportation, natural hazards and environment sectors.NGI is a private foundation with office and laboratory in Oslo, branch office in Trondheim and daughter company in Houston, Texas, USA. NGI was awarded Centre of Excellence status in 2002 and leads the International Centre for Geohazards (ICG).
Press Releases
Ohio DOT Adopts GIS-Based EQuIS for Its Geotechnical Data Management
Redlands, California—The Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) will implement an enterprise version of EarthSoft’s Environmental Quality Information System (EQuIS) for ArcGIS to better manage, analyze, and share geotechnical data throughout the organization. An agreement between ODOT and EarthSoft, an ESRI business partner, will see EarthSoft provide the transportation industry standard Data Interchange for Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Specialists (DIGGS) as electronic data deliverables (EDD). The new data will then reside and be accessible through ODOT’s enterprise-wide geographic information system (GIS)-supported EQuIS database.
Standards and Codes
Changes in Geotechnical Engineering Practice in Arizona
[Editor] Note: NCS Consultants, LLC is Randy Post’s full time employer…ie. my day job! [/Editor]
There are some significant changes being made to the state of the practice in geotechnical engineering in Arizona. NCS Consultants, LLC has prepared three policy memoranda for the Arizona Department of Transportation or ADOT that have been issued to consultants all over the State. These memos are on the topics of bearing capacity and settlement of spread footings and retaining walls, the design of drilled shaft foundations in gravelly soils, and the preparation of drilled shaft axial capacity charts for use by bridge engineers.
Although primarily applicable to upcoming ADOT projects implementing the AASHTO 2007 LRFD code, the memos will have a ripple effect down through other local agencies within the state who frequently defer to ADOT guidelines for geotechnical engineering. Also, the memos and the ADOT/NCS approach to LRFD implementation in geotechnical engineering were presented by NCS at the 2008 TRB Conference in Washington D.C., and many other state DOTs and the FHWA were very excited about the memos. The approach used if not the exact content may become a model for other agencies. More info and links to download the policy memoranda are provided after the break.
Links
FHWA Geotechnical Engineering Publications
For transportation related geotechnical engineering, these publications are an absolute must! But all practicing geotechs should find something useful. Visit FHWA Geotechnical Engineering Publications