This paper presents a field pile load test program conducted on four 0.36 m closed-end steel pipe piles with lengths ranging between 11 and 13 m installed in fine-grained soils. Subsurface investigations with standard penetration tests and cone penetration tests with pore pressure measurements were performed at the site. Three pushed-in piezometers at incremental offsets from the piles were also installed to monitor pore water pressure changes during and after the installation of piles. Several dynamic load tests were performed at different times to observe the change in pile resistance. A static load test was also performed on one of the piles. Some load test results showed an unexpected decrease in the resistances of some piles with time. The study showed that construction activities, e.g., installation of other piles, disturbs the soil and groundwater conditions which can significantly affect the pile resistance measured during load tests. This investigation revealed that pile driving and restrikes should be scheduled such that the effect of construction activities on load tests results will be avoided or minimized.

A field measurement was conducted on an H-pile driven into a multilayer soil profile to analyze the axial stresses/forces generated on the pile during bridge construction activities. Vibrating wire strain gauges and piezometers were utilized, and dynamic testing was conducted for this purpose. Measurements revealed that the pile's pre-installation and temperature changes after installation in cooler ground caused shifts in strain gauge readings. Furthermore, driving an adjacent pile into the vicinity equivalent to four pile diameters, caused a notable increase in pore water pressure, resulting in decreased stresses on the pile. Concreting on top of the pile induced compressive stress during the first day, followed by a considerable decrease and development of tension on the pile over the next two days. Considering the residual force due to pile installation, force distribution, neutral plane location, and maximum axial force along the shaft were different and higher than in the case where this force was ignored. This paper presents a robust methodology to evaluate forces/stresses in a pile subject to installation through to final loading, including drag force effects based on instrumentation measurements. This novel approach provides a better understanding of drag force impacts on actual load capacity under final production loading.