Geolabs, Inc.

Geolabs provided geotechnical engineering services for the reimagined International Market Place in Waikiki, a mixed retail and open-air complex developed by Taubman Centers. Work centered on micropile foundation design and construction support under challenging conditions including highly variable substrata, artesian groundwater, protected heritage Banyan trees, and active archaeological constraints. Geolabs collaborated in a design-assist arrangement with specialty micropile contractor Hayward Baker Inc., alongside structural engineer Ludwig Structural Consulting and general contractor dck-FWF.

Geolabs performed geotechnical engineering services during the conceptual and preliminary engineering phases of the Honolulu High-Capacity Transit Corridor Project, a 20-mile fixed-guideway rail system connecting Kapolei to the University of Hawaii at Manoa with a Waikiki branch. Scope included drilling and sampling 130 borings totaling over 16,000 lineal feet of exploration, seismic cone penetration testing, shear wave velocity profiling, groundwater monitoring with vibrating wire piezometers, and preliminary drilled shaft foundation analyses for compression and lateral loads along the entire Minimum Operating Segment.

Geolabs served as geotechnical consultant for the expansion of Ala Moana Center, the largest shopping center in Hawaii. General Growth Properties developed approximately 173,300 square feet north of the existing mall, including a three-level Nordstrom store, a seven-level parking structure with provisions for a future residential tower, and a retail connector. Discovery of an ancient alluvial stream channel across part of the site required a flexible foundation approach combining drilled shafts, augered cast-in-place piles, driven concrete piles, and drilled micropiles to address variable subsurface conditions and reduce overall foundation costs.

Geotechnical engineering services for the Kahului Airport Terminal Complex on Maui.