The project is a new hotel located on W. Laurel Street, Tampa, Hillsborough County. The structure is a 6‐story, approximate 11,000 square‐footprint building, stormwater vault, pool, and associated parking & drive areas. Due to presence of loose sands & soft clay layers in the upper 20 feet, we utilized a Dry Bottom Feed (DBF) installation method for our Vibro‐Replacement Stone Column (VSC) program to provide an allowable net bearing capacity of 6,000 psf.

The challenges encountered during VSC installation were minimal:

• Limited movement around the site, due to multiple trades
• Weather conditions were unfavorable and slowed production

Helicon’s design engineer followed the requirements of the Geotechnical Engineer of Record, in order to create the VSC program to install depths of 15 feet. Helicon’s VSC crew worked 10‐hour shifts for 5 days a week, in order to complete the program. Efficient planning & coordination was key to overcoming the challenges & limitations. (284) Vibro‐Replacement Stone Columns (VSC) were installed from site grade to the prescribed depths and a single column modulus test was performed for verification. The project was completed within (2) weeks and within budget.