Organisers & Partners

For over thirty years, DFI has gathered professionals in the deep foundations sector of the construction industry, to create a place for discussion, inquiry and debate. In so doing, DFI has brought the disciplines together where they have learned from each other, creating a better informed, more communicative foundations industry.

The newly named Deep Foundations Institute was incorporated in 1976. The idea that engineers, contractors, manufacturers and suppliers, academics and owners should have a forum for dialog and technology exchange with equal and interdisciplinary participation became the cornerstone of the Institute, and has been ever since. After a few years a professional office - DFI Headquarters - was opened at New Jersey (since 2004 Englewood Cliffs).

Today, DFI is an international organization with membership from 40 plus countries from 6 continents. Technical Committees represent the advancement and understanding of 10 foundations systems including: Augered Cast-In-Place Pile, Drilled Shaft, Driven Pile, Helical Foundations and Tiebacks, Marine Foundations, Micropiles, Slurry Walls, Soil Mixing, Testing and Evaluations and Tiebacks and Soil Nails

EFFC officers and national co-ordinators, through the executive committee and the working groups, produce detailed guidance documents on a wide range of industry-relevant topics, from dispute resolution to joint venture contracts, to the use of on-line bidding and much more.

The technical working group is active on a wide range of issues, including the preparation of EU technical codes for specialist geotechnical and foundation activities. The federation's contracts working group tracks changes in specialist contracting arrangements and lobbies at national and European levels for better conditions of contract for specialist subcontractors.

The main tasks of the EFFC's safety working group include the development and dissemination of methods to improve safety and health protection during the execution of geotechnical and foundation works.

The EFFC promotes the common interests of its members with the aim of improving standards of workmanship and maintaining high standards of technical competence, safety and innovation, and continues to drive forward the development of technical execution codes in the European ground engineering sector.