DFI Official Lecture
Speaker: Emad Sharif
Designation: GTC LAB Director
Company: GTC (Geotechnical Testing Consultants) – Dubai, UAE
Born in 1958 in Palestine. Obtained B.Sc. Degree in Civil Engineering from Alexandria University in Egypt in 1982 and obtained Master’s Degree in Geotechnical Engineering from Stanford University, California, U.S.A in 1984.
Emad became a lecturer in Birzeit University, Ramallah - West Bank (Birzeit is the leading PALESTINIAN UNIVERSITY adopting modern education systems) in the Civil Engineering Department for 10 years from 1984 to 1994 –
Joined Arab Centre for Engineering Studies (ACES) in 1994 as General Manager of ACES Palestine Branch. Transferred to Dubai in 2004 as ACES Dubai and Oman Area Manager.
In February 2016, joined e.construct, a specialist consultant on Value Engineering, in Dubai as Geotechnical Engineering Director, until present.
Emad is a co-founder, and director of GTC LAB (Geotechnical Testing Consultants), opened in July 2016 in Dubai to provide state of the art, advanced Geotechnical Laboratory Tests, and NDT testing services.
Emad Sharif has been involved in many geotechnical investigation studies with diverse scope for unique and prestigious projects, as Burj Khalifa (Dubai), Kingdom Tower (Jeddeh), Palm Jumeira (Dubai), Duqm Port (Oman). His experience includes a variety of related fields such as: planning of site investigation studies, geotechnical evaluation & interpretation, design and testing of piles, liquefaction studies, soil and rock slope stability studies, design of dewatering and shoring systems, Soil-Structure Interaction, instrumentation and monitoring, design & control of ground improvement works.
Member of the Society of Engineers in the U.A.E and American Society of Testing Materials (ASTM). Member and co-founder of Emirates Ground Engineering Forum (EGEF) & member & present Chair of DFI (MENA).
Elected, as one of the two representatives of the accredited laboratories in Dubai for the Advisory Technical Committee of “Emirates International Accreditation (EIAC), formerly DAC”.
Deep Foundation Institute (DFI)
Deep Foundations Institute® was incorporated in 1976 in the State of New Jersey as a 501(c)(6) nonprofit association. DFI is an international association of contractors, engineers, manufacturers, suppliers, academics and owners in the deep foundations industry. Our multidisciplinary membership creates a consensus voice and a common vision for continual improvement in the planning, design and construction of deep foundations and excavations. We bring together members through networking, education, communication and collaboration. With our members, we promote the advancement of the deep foundations industry through technical committees, educational programs and conferences, publication of guides and specifications, a peer-reviewed journal, a flagship magazine, research, government relations and outreach. DFI has more than 3,000 involved, knowledgeable and committed members worldwide.
DFI’s international membership has representation from more than 50 countries and 6 continents, as well as Regional Chapters in Europe (established 2005), Middle East (established 2010) and India (established 2013). These Regional Chapters provides joint membership in DFI and the individual chapter, providing the added benefit of a local DFI presence. Our continued global outreach ensures DFI members gain knowledge about foundation design and construction issues worldwide; making them better informed professionals and global industry contributors.
Additionally DFI has 18 technical committees and 3 working groups which are the backbone of the organization. Their role is to focus on the unique issues of major methods and technologies within deep foundations and excavation. Committees are added as new methods and technologies are introduced in the deep foundations industry. The DFI Committee Project Fund was created in 2011 to provide funding of Technical Committee projects that advance the state of practice and understanding of deep foundations and provide a usable deliverable. DFI members can participate in one of several Technical Committees. The current DFI groups are:
- Augered Cast-in-Place/Continuous Flight Auger Piles
- Codes and Standards
- Deep Foundations for Landslides and Slope Stabilization
- Drilled Shafts
- Driven Piles
- Electric Powers Systems Foundations
- Energy Foundations
- Ground Improvement
- Helical Piles and Tiebacks
- Manufacturers, Suppliers and Service Providers
- Marine Foundations
- Micropiles
- Seismic and Lateral Loads
- Seepage Control
- Slurry/Diaphragm/Cut-off Walls
- Soil Mixing
- Subsurface Characterization
- Sustainability
- Testing and Evaluation (Monitoring and Instrumentation)
- Tiebacks and Soil Nailing
- Women in Deep Foundations