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Supporting the Connecticut River Bridge Replacement
Work is underway on the replacement of Amtrak’s Connecticut River Bridgem(CRB) between Old Saybrook and Old Lyme, Connecticut. Led by O&G Industries in partnership with Tutor Perini Corporation, the project will modernize a key piece of infrastructure along one of the busiest rail corridors in the United States—reinforcing Amtrak’s long-term investment in passenger rail.
Geocomp’s Monitoring team is playing a vital role in advancing the project by delivering real-time insights into the performance of the existing bridge during adjacent construction activities. With trains continuing to run throughout the construction process, maintaining safety and stability is critical.
To support this effort, Geocomp has implemented a comprehensive monitoring program that includes track and structural instrumentation such as tilt meters, seismographs, and automated total stations. These systems provide continuous data to help the project team quickly identify and respond to any movement or changes in conditions.
In addition, Geocomp designed and installed an innovative scour monitoring system further enhancing the project’s ability to manage risk in a dynamic river environment.
By supporting informed decision-making throughout construction, Geocomp is helping support the safe, efficient delivery of this essential infrastructure project while minimizing disruption to ongoing rail operations.
Seismic Survey Confirms Pipeline Route
Before trenching began on a planned 30-inch pipeline in North Carolina, an energy infrastructure project team faced an important question: would the proposed alignment encounter an extended stretch of non-rippable rock that could force a costly route change?
Subsurface “rippability” refers to how easily soil or rock can be excavated using conventional construction equipment. Encountering hard rock unexpectedly during trenching can significantly impact construction schedules and budgets.
To reduce this risk, the client engaged Geocomp to evaluate subsurface conditions along the approximately 11‑mile pipeline corridor, focusing on the upper 10 feet of ground where trenching would occur.
Geocomp conducted a geophysical survey along the alignment using a land streamer-based seismic method that provides a continuous subsurface profile. Unlike traditional boreholes, which capture conditions at discrete points, this approach allows engineers to understand how ground conditions change along the route.
Using the seismic data, Geocomp developed shear wave velocity profiles to characterize shallow stratigraphy and estimate the depth to rock. Subsurface materials were categorized into four classes: soil, partially weathered rock, marginally rippable rock, and non-rippable rock.
The results showed that non-rippable rock was not expected within the planned trenching depth along the alignment. With this information, the client was able to proceed with the original route— avoiding potential route redesign, permitting delays, and additional excavation costs.
Layered Imagery for Historical Site Analysis
Expanding the Frontiers of Polar Research: Geocomp Supports NATO’s Acoustic Ice Studies
High-resolution imagery is becoming an increasingly valuable tool for understanding how sites evolve over time. Geocomp’s development team has implemented a scalable imagery workflow within iSiteCentral® that enables clients to access time‑stamped aerial imagery alongside monitoring data.
For several coal ash storage facilities, aerial imagery is captured monthly, processed, and uploaded to the platform as layered imagery. These images provide visual context that complements instrumentation data and helps project teams observe changes as they occur.
Since 2022, more than 110 high‑resolution images have been uploaded across multiple projects. When layered chronologically, these images allow engineers to track developments such as ash stack growth, settlement pond changes, site expansion, and closure progress.
Expanding Laboratory Capacity to Support Infrastructure Projects
Infrastructure and energy projects increasingly rely on advanced geotechnical laboratory testing to better understand soil and rock behavior before construction begins. As project complexity grows, demand for high-quality testing to support engineering design continues to increase.
That demand was especially visible at the start of 2026. GeoTesting Express (GTX), Geocomp’s geotechnical laboratory group, experienced one of the busiest starts to a year in its history, with January representing the largest month of laboratory testing activity to date. February quickly followed as another exceptionally strong month, reflecting sustained demand from infrastructure and energy projects worldwide.
Supporting Infrastructure Projects Around the World
In recent months, GTX has supported projects across multiple sectors and regions, including:
- Offshore Oil & Gas Exploration, Mozambique (Africa)
- Offshore Oil & Gas Project, Trinidad & Tobago
- Darlington Nuclear Power Plant, Ontario (Canada)
- Lee-Milburnie Electric Transmission Line, North Carolina
Together, these projects highlight the range of industries GTX serves—from offshore energy development to nuclear power and critical transmission infrastructure, as well as the growing international reach of Geocomp’s laboratory services.
By providing detailed laboratory data early in the project lifecycle, GTX helps engineering teams make informed design decisions and reduce uncertainty before construction begins.
Expanding Capacity for Clients
To support growing demand, GTX is expanding its laboratory footprint. New laboratory locations planned for New York and California within the next year will increase testing capacity and improve regional accessibility for clients across North America.
Integrating Advanced Testing Systems into End-to-End Infrastructure Delivery
As infrastructure owners increasingly seek integrated solutions that reduce complexity and improve coordination, the role of geotechnical laboratories is evolving. High-performing labs are not standalone—they are a critical part of an end-to-end infrastructure workflow that connects site investigation, design, and construction.
This work is enabled not only by laboratory expertise, but by the performance and reliability of the testing systems behind it. Geocomp’s Products group designs and delivers advanced geotechnical testing equipment that integrates into this broader workflow—helping engineering teams generate consistent, high-quality data that informs decisions across the infrastructure lifecycle.
In this context, Geocomp is supporting Schnabel Engineering as they expand testing capabilities at their flagship laboratory in Glen Allen, VA. The upgrade enhances Schnabel’s ability to deliver timely, reliable subsurface data as part of a coordinated project delivery approach, supporting better decision-making in the early phases of infrastructure development.
Scheduled for delivery in May 2026, the new systems will increase capacity across key geotechnical tests, including Permeability, Consolidation, California Bearing Ratio (CBR), Unconfined Compression, Direct Shear and Direct Simple Shear testing. These capabilities play a critical role in the investigation and design phases—providing the data that underpins engineering analysis, construction planning, and long-term asset performance.
Because Schnabel’s team is already experienced with Geocomp’s equipment, the focus of this engagement has been on ongoing technical support, ensuring the team can maximize efficiency, troubleshoot questions, and continue operating at a high level without disruption.
This collaboration reflects Geocomp’s broader role in delivering end-to-end infrastructure solutions—combining consulting, testing, monitoring, and products to reduce fragmentation and support better project outcomes. By integrating advanced systems with technical expertise, Geocomp helps clients move seamlessly from site characterization through design and construction with greater confidence.
Spotlight on Our People
Gary Torosian Concludes ASTM Committee Leadership
Gary Torosian recently wrapped up his six-year term as Chairman of ASTM International’s Committee D35 on Geosynthetics, which oversees 171 widely used standards and includes nearly 300 members from across industry, academia, and government.
During his tenure, Gary helped launch the D35.40 Sustainability Subcommittee, expanded participation through domestic and international meetings, introduced a new guide for developing and revising standards, and improved committee efficiency by implementing regular virtual executive meetings. He also revived the committee’s guest-speaker program, bringing practicing engineers to share how ASTM standards are applied in real-world projects. These standards play an important role in infrastructure projects worldwide by helping engineers design and implement geosynthetic solutions consistently and safely.
Gary will remain active with the committee as Past Chairman, continuing to support special initiatives and subcommittee leadership. Pictured here, Gary passes the ASTM gavel to incoming Chairman Robert Lozano.
Ozan Celik Presents at TRB Annual Meeting
Ozan Celik recently presented at the Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting alongside Erik Zuker of HNTB, a collaborator on the Mario M. Cuomo Bridge project. Their session, moderated by Navid Zolghadri of Michael Baker International, focused on “Value and Challenges of Global Structural Health Monitoring: A Data Analytics Perspective.”
The presentation explored how large-scale structural health monitoring systems can help transportation agencies better understand infrastructure performance while addressing challenges related to data quality, scalability, interpretation, and integration into engineering decision-making.
Drawing on experience from major infrastructure programs, the session highlighted how data analytics and monitoring technologies can provide actionable insights that support long-term infrastructure management.
João Machado Presents at Geo-Congress 2026
At Geo-Congress 2026, João Machado of Geocomp’s Products grouppresented on the critical role of geotechnical laboratory testing in supporting the transition away from upstream tailings dams in Latin America.
Following major dam failures in Brazil, initiatives were launched to discontinue upstream tailings storage and transition to safer alternatives— efforts that require extensive laboratory testing to better understand material behavior.
Geocomp’s automated testing systems, including Triaxial, Consolidation, Direct Shear, Direct Simple Shear, and Bender Element equipment, have supported laboratories involved in this work. Through equipment deployment, training, and ongoing collaboration, Geocomp has worked with universities, research centers, and commercial labs across Brazil to expand testing capacity and support these critical safety initiatives.
Heba Ghoneim Earns PhD and Joins Geocomp Consulting
Heba Ghoneim recently earned her PhD in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of New Hampshire, where her research focused on the mechanical and hydraulic behavior of propped fractured rocks.
Her work examined how stress and fluid conditions influence permeability and long-term fracture conductivity—important factors in understanding subsurface fluid flow and the performance of fractured rock systems.
Heba first joined Geocomp last summer as an intern and has now returned as a full-time member of the consulting team in Acton. We’re excited to welcome her back and look forward to seeing her expertise applied on future client projects.
