Years of Experience

37

Education

M.S. Civil Engineering 1988 (Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta)

M.S. Civil Engineering 1986 (Florida International University, Miami)

B.S. Civil Engineering 1978 (University of Cartagena, Colombia)

Professional Registrations

Professional Engineer, Florida 42045

LBR Technician-CTQP Certified

Professional Affiliations

American Society of Civil Engineer

Key Qualifications

Geotechnical engineer with more than 37 years of experience with transportation, industrial, ports, civil and projects. His experience includes design, planning, execution of new geotechnical projects and the remedial procedures to correct foundation problems of existing structures, extensive involvement with axial and lateral pile analyses, slope stability evaluation on retaining walls and embankment projects using geosynthetic reinforcement. Other specialties include design of numerous retaining walls types such as mechanically stabilized earth, reinforced concrete, sheet pile cantilever and anchored walls.

Detailed Experience

Planning, Analysis, Execution and Review of Geotechnical Projects

During the past 20 years, he assisted in, as well as supervised over 1200 geotechnical explorations and construction monitoring projects ranging from one story structures such as industrial and commercial facilities to more complex projects including high-rise buildings, several roadway and bridge foundation evaluations, one elevated light rail people mover, two extensions to the existing metrorail, and two tunnel evaluation projects.  Extensive experience with shallow foundations bearing on both soil and natural rock.  Responsible for geotechnical recommendations for deep foundations on soil, weathered and hard rocks and a combination of soil/rock conditions for projects in south Florida.  Deep foundation system recommendations have typically consisted of driven piles, redundant and non-redundant drilled shafts, augercast piles, Franki piles, pin-piles and micropiles.

Shallow Foundation Recommendations and Evaluations

Shallow foundations on fill soils generally included the removal of unsuitable soils and their replacement with structural fills. Shallow foundations bearing on the South Florida Limestone generally included a special foundation preparation consisting of cleaning of the cavities in the rock and filling with lean concrete.

Shallow foundation types ranged from strip and individual footings for several multi‑story buildings, telecommunication towers, for support of the piers for an elevated people mover, an extension of the Metrorail Transit System, and FDOT bridge piers.  Bearing capacity and settlement evaluations have been an integral part of preparing shallow foundation recommendations for most structures.  Mr. Ramos has been involved with roadway projects requiring evaluation of embankments bearing on soft soils, in particular the widening of five miles of State Road 5 (U.S. 1) near Key Largo. The stability of the new embankments was provided with geogrids.

Deep Foundation System Recommendations

Deep foundation system recommendations have typically consisted of driven piles, augercast piles, Franki piles, pin‑piles, micropiles and drilled shafts. He has recommended augercast piles to pile lengths up to 110 feet and drill shafts with diameters up to 9 feet, lengths up to 80 feet, and capacity of about 1400 tons in friction, drilled over water, and driven piles with sections up to 30 inches by 30 inches, and lengths up to 130 feet and capacities of 300 tons for bridge support. These foundation alternatives have been recommended for several major structures in South Florida, including a 62-story high-rise building in downtown Miami, a 70-foot high new MacArthur bridge, and numerous mono shafts for support of telecommunication towers up to 200 feet in height and an extension of the Metrorail in Miami.

Slope Stability Settlement Analysis

Mr. Ramos has also been responsible for planning, analyzing data, and providing recommendations for slope stability and settlement analysis for numerous projects. He has recommended MSE, reinforced concrete, sheet pile, cantilever and anchored walls. His experience has included the design of driven piles, concrete panels cantilever retaining walls and anchored walls. He has also designed geogrid-reinforced embankments with MSE walls with an overall height of 40 feet. 

SUMMARY OF KEY PROJECTS

Mr. Ramos has been technically involved with numerous FDOT and Miami-Dade Expressway Authority (MDX) projects.  The following list includes several selected projects:

NW 25^th Street Viaduct Structure, from NW 22^nd Street to SR 826.  Design - Group axial and lateral analysis of 24-inch square prestressed concrete driven piles.  The viaduct structure has a maximum span of 220 feet.  Our recommendations for minimum pile tip elevations are based on the lateral analysis.  Construction - Recommended dynamic pile testing (PDA) at every pier located in the canal and at every other pier located in the ground.  PDA testing is presently conducted.  Production pile lengths and driving criteria are presently provided.

Earlington Heights Metrorail Extension, from Earlington Heights Metrorail Station to MIC. - Design - Group axial and lateral analysis of 24-inch diameter augercast piles and 36-inch diameter drilled shafts.  The metrorail guideways have span lengths exceeding 150 feet.  The structure has both continuous post-tensioned concrete segments and concrete segmental spans.  A great portion of the metrorail alignment consists of a single pier supporting two metrorail guideways.  Our recommendations for minimum pile tip elevations are based on the lateral analysis.  Construction - Recommended a total of 5 axial compression Statnamic load tests, 3 lateral Statnamic load tests in addition to 2 static tensile load tests.

Macarthur Causeway Bridge.  Design - Bridge over the Biscayne Bay designed for vessel collision and retaining walls designed to sustain minor damages during a hurricane.  Bridge supported on 3-foot diameter (end bents) and 7-foot diameter (intermediate piers) drilled shafts.  Group axial and lateral analysis of drilled shafts design included scour considerations.  The bridge has span lengths exceeding 150 feet.  Construction - Performed 1static axial compression load test.

SR 874/Killian Parkway Interchange.  Design - Bridge over SR 874 continuous span structure with span length of 240 feet.  The deck (concrete) and the steel structure are built together.  Construction - Recommended dynamic pile testing (PDA) at 3 test pile locations.

I-95 SB Widening, from Opa-Locka Boulevard to NW 125^th Street.  Design - Bridge widening using 3 and 3.5-foot diameter non-redundant drilled shafts.  Construction - Evaluated the results of 1 Statnamic load test and implemented results in the final design.

SR 836 WB Bridge over CSX Railroad.  Design - Bridge with span lengths greater than 150 feet.  Construction - Performed 8 dynamic pile testing (PDA).  Provided production pile lengths and driving criteria.

SR 826/SR 836 Interchange. Final Design  Provided geotechnical recommendations for roadway and MSE walls. The project has an extensive demucking program under the proposed embankments/MSE walls. Provided geotechnical recommendations for sign structures and mast arms.