NCSG Starts Work on New FHWA Flagship Geotechnical Manual

In October 2019, Naresh Samtani started work on update of the FHWA flagship manual titled “Soils and Foundations” (S&F). Naresh and Dr. Edward Nowatzki of NCS GeoResources, LLC (NCSG) were the co-authors of the 2006 edition of this manual and performed the work as part of the Ryan R. Berg and Associates (RRBA) team. The 2006 edition was prepared using the Allowable Stress Design (ASD) platform. Since 2006 many changes have occurred in the geotechnical industry with the biggest change being transition to Load and Resistance Factor Design (LRFD) platform. Many of the FHWA’s manuals have been revised to be in accordance with LRFD methodology of American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO). FHWA selected the team of Applied Research Associates, Inc. (ARA) to update the S&F manual to LRFD platform and it will then become the Geotechnical Engineering Circular (GEC) 1. ARA teamed with NCSG to develop the update. Naresh will continue to be the lead author for this update and will co-author the manual with Jerry DiMaggio of ARA. The kick-off meeting for this update occurred in October 2019 in Chicago. The work is now underway and is expected to be completed in late 2020. The manual will be re-titled as “Geotechnical Design and Construction Considerations for Highway Projects”. This manual will include updated guidance in all of its chapters and will constitute a major update. Stay tuned for updates related to the development of this new FHWA’s flagship geotechnical manual.