Somerville, Boston
Deep Foundations in Somerville
Pile driving, drilled shafts, and earth support for Somerville projects, founded on the area's till and bedrock where high capacity is required.
We know your ground
What's under Somerville
The subsurface dictates the means and methods. Here's the profile we engineer for in this part of the city.
Illustrative — depths vary by site. Every project is driven by its own geotechnical report.
Fill and marine clay over dense glacial till and bedrock; competent deeper strata make high-capacity driven piles and drilled shafts effective.
- Urban Fill
- Variable density and obstructions make fill unsuitable for direct bearing; it is typically penetrated by piles and supported during excavation.
- Boston Blue Clay
- Sensitive to disturbance and prone to consolidation settlement; lateral support and dewatering control are critical to protect adjacent structures.
- Glacial Till
- High bearing capacity and low compressibility; an excellent founding stratum for driven piles and a competent layer to socket through.
- Argillite / Bedrock
- Provides the highest end-bearing capacity; drilled shafts can be socketed into rock for heavily loaded columns and uplift resistance.
How Somerville’s ground drives our means and methods — support of excavation, dewatering control, and the founding stratum we drive or socket to.
Scope
What we install in Somerville
The full below-grade scope a general contractor can hand to one subcontractor.
- Earth SupportSoldier piles, sheet piles, lagging, and tiebacks for secure excavation support.
- AnchorsSoil and rock anchors — ground, helical, and micropiles — to reinforce foundations.
- UnderpinningStructural underpinning with driven precast concrete piles to strengthen foundations.
- Pile DrivingDriven foundation piles installed to capacity with production-rate efficiency.
- Drilled ShaftsAugered, cased, and rock-socketed drilled shafts for high-capacity foundations.
Projects
Representative Somerville work
Representative deep-foundation projects in and around Somerville. References available on request.
FAQ
Somerville deep-foundation questions
Building in Somerville?
Tell us about the site and we'll put together a detailed quote within 3 days. We generally work with general contractors.