Exam Cheat Sheet · Quick Reference
Louisiana Pile Driving
Louisiana · PSI Services Contractor
Verified, not estimated. Every figure below is drawn from the official exam structure we maintain — question counts, passing standard and topic weighting. Practice questions are grounded in the source law with statute citations. We omit any figure we can't verify rather than guess at it.
Total questions
50
Passing score
70%
Exam time
120 min
Administered by
PSI Services Contractor
Format
Reference materials allowed
Louisiana State Portion 50 questions
Pile and Caisson Drilling and Foundation Preparation
30 Q · 60%
Pile types and classification (timber, concrete, steel, composite, sheet piles)Pile-driving hammers and driving equipment selectionResistance to pile penetration: skin friction vs. end-bearing mechanismsSite investigation, test pile programs, and bearing capacity determinationCaisson construction and compressed-air work safety requirements (OSHA 1926.801/1926.803)Cofferdam design, installation, and safety requirements (OSHA 1926.802)Earth and rock drilling methods for foundation preparation (percussion, rotary, auger)Groundwater control and dewatering techniques for foundation excavation
Concrete
8 Q · 16%
Concrete mixture components and proportioning (cement types, water-cementitious ratio, aggregates, admixtures, supplementary cementitious materials)Fresh concrete field testing (slump, air content, compressive strength cylinders, unit weight/yield per ASTM standards)Concrete placement methods (truck chute, pump, bucket, conveyor, buggy) and consolidation by vibrationFormwork design, materials, types, lateral pressure, shoring/reshoring, and stripping requirementsReinforcement types, placement, bar identification, welded wire reinforcement, and fiber-reinforced concreteHot and cold weather concreting practices and common field problems (bleeding, segregation, cracking, scaling)Concrete joints in structures and slabs-on-ground (contraction, isolation, and construction joints)OSHA 1926 Subpart Q safety requirements for concrete and masonry construction (formwork, reinforcing steel, post-tensioning, equipment, PPE)
General Knowledge
6 Q · 12%
Estimating and bidding procedures for underground utility workEquipment ownership, operating, and rental costsLabor burden, overhead, and markup calculationsCrew and equipment productivity rates and correction factorsBonding requirements and bond types for contractorsReading plans, surveying, and grade calculationSoil volume calculations and earthwork quantity estimationContract terms, change orders, and cost control
Safety OSHA
6 Q · 12%
Personal protective equipment (PPE) requirements for pile driving operationsFall protection systems and criteria (guardrail, safety net, personal fall arrest)Crane and dedicated pile driver safety requirements under Subpart CCExcavation and cofferdam safety requirementsNoise exposure limits and hearing conservation during pile drivingGeneral contractor accident prevention responsibilities and safety trainingPower line clearance and electrocution hazard prevention for cranes and pile driversUnderground construction, caisson, and compressed air safety provisions
Key Distinctions
Quality controlvsQuality assurance
Quality control is control of the product — actions and documentation that make what is being done follow applicable standards and contract documents — while quality assurance verifies and documents that those controls are in place and working.
The Contractor's Guide to Quality Concrete Construction, Page 132Ownership costvsOperating cost
Major repairs and overhauls are ownership costs because they extend service life (an investment in a new machine), whereas fuel, lubricants, and tires are operating costs; ownership cost per hour falls over time while operating cost per hour rises, and optimum economic life is the minimum total cost per hour.
Construction Equipment Guide, Chapter 2, Page 80Type 1 differing site conditionvsType 2 differing site condition
Type 1 exists when actual conditions differ materially from those indicated in the contract; Type 2 arises when actual conditions differ from what would be reasonably expected (not indicated in the contract documents).
Construction Planning, Equipment, and Methods (9th ed.), Chapter 3 — Earthwork Planning sectionPayment bondvsPerformance bond
A payment bond guarantees all bills for labor, equipment, and materials are paid and liens against the project are discharged; a performance bond guarantees completion of the work.
Pipe and Excavation Contracting, Page 47Single-acting steam or air hammervsDouble-acting hammer
A single-acting steam or air hammer strikes 40 to 60 blows per minute, while a double-acting hammer delivers 95 to 300 blows per minute (700 to 1,200 refers to optimal vibratory hammer frequency).
Construction Planning, Equipment, and Methods (9th ed.), Chapter 17 — Single-Acting Hammers sectionForm tie safety factorvsForm anchor safety factor
Form ties use the usual 2:1 safety factor (working load limited to half the ultimate tensile strength), while form anchors securing formwork to previously placed concrete require a minimum safety factor of 3 including live loads and impact because the concrete may still be green.
Contractor's Guide to Quality Concrete Construction (4th ed.), Page 66Wheeled backhoevsTrack excavator
A wheeled backhoe has a minimum effective digging cycle of about 10 seconds (29 LCY/hr in the cited job), while a small ¾-yard trackhoe cycles in about 15 seconds (large track excavators 30–40 seconds) and produced 50 LCY/hr but its high mobilization cost (~10% of total job cost) made it unattractive on the small 1,230-ft job.
Pipe and Excavation Contracting, Page 168Predrilling soldier pilesvsDriving soldier piles
Soldier piles (H-piles) are set in predrilled holes around the excavation periphery and grouted with weak concrete because predrilling, rather than driving, gives close control of alignment and location.
Construction Planning, Equipment, and Methods (9th ed.), Chapter 3 — Soldier Piles and Lagging sectionSwell of cohesive soilvsSwell of solid rock
Between bank and loose states cohesive soils swell about 40% while solid rock swells as much as 65%; from bank to placement in an embankment solid rock swells 20 to 40% (10–30% is the shrinkage of cohesive soil from bank to compacted).
Construction Equipment Guide, Chapter 4 - Soil and Rock, Volumetric MeasureExposure class F3 (freeze-thaw with deicing chemicals)vsExposure classes S2 (sulfate) and W1 (water, low permeability)
F3 concrete is limited to a maximum w/cm of 0.40 with 5000 psi minimum; sulfate class S2 (1,500–10,000 ppm dissolved sulfate) allows 0.45 w/cm with 4500 psi; class W1 allows 0.50 w/cm with 4000 psi.
Contractor's Guide to Quality Concrete Construction (4th ed.), Page 24 (Table 2.5)Short-haul earthmoving equipmentvsLonger- and long-haul equipment
Dozers are recommended for short hauls, self-loading scrapers for longer hauls, and loaders with trucks for long-distance hauling; graders are used only for very slight cuts and fills.
Pipe and Excavation Contracting, Pages 270-271Digging in undisturbed soilvsDigging in an old trench line
Soil resistance is usually greater in undisturbed earth, so an existing/previously dug trench line digs easier — a cue operators and grademen use to detect disturbed ground.
Pipe and Excavation Contracting, Page 148Key Terms
Competent person OSHA 1926 CFR 29, Page 31
Per 29 CFR 1926.32(f), one capable of identifying existing and predictable hazards in the surroundings or working conditions that are unsanitary, hazardous, or dangerous to employees and who has authorization to take prompt corrective measures to eliminate them (no degree, experience count, or certificate is specified).
Danger sign OSHA 1926 CFR 29, §1926.200(b)(1)
Per §1926.200(b), a sign used only where an immediate hazard exists, having red as the predominating color for the upper panel, black outline on the borders, and a white lower panel for additional wording.
Caisson 29 CFR 1926, §1926.804(b)
Per 29 CFR 1926.804(b), a wood, steel, concrete or reinforced concrete air- and water-tight chamber in which workers can work under air pressure greater than atmospheric to excavate material below water level (a bulkhead is the airtight structure separating the working chamber from free air; the working chamber is the pressurized space where work is done).
Station Construction Equipment Guide, Chapter 3 - Planning for Earthwork Construction, GRAPHICAL PRESENTATION OF EARTHWORK
A horizontal distance of 100 ft; adjacent stations are 100 ft apart, and a station number such as Sta 2+50 locates a point 250 ft from Sta 0+00.
Station yard Construction Equipment Guide, Chapter 3 - Planning for Earthwork Construction, MASS DIAGRAM
A measure of earthwork effort equal to the movement of 1 cubic yard through a distance of one station (100 ft), used in mass diagram analysis.
Balance line Construction Equipment Guide, Chapter 3 - Planning for Earthwork Construction, Balance Lines
A horizontal line on a mass diagram that intersects the diagram in two places, its length equal to the maximum economical haul distance for a particular machine type.
Escalation allowance Pipe and Excavation Contracting, Page 27
An allowance for the increase in costs of labor, materials, and equipment between the time the bid is submitted and the time the work is done and paid for; especially important in high-inflation periods.
Contingency allowance Pipe and Excavation Contracting, Page 273
An amount added before bidding a job with uncertain conditions (e.g., no boring logs) to cover possible problems and to cushion equipment rental costs when equipment sits idle.
Mobilization cost Pipe and Excavation Contracting, Page 60
The cost of moving in equipment; it is sometimes itemized as a separate bid item, and if it is not, it must be included in the equipment cost calculations.
Independent testing laboratory Contractor's Guide to Quality Concrete Construction (4th ed.), Page 133
A laboratory contracted to conduct acceptance testing of materials and workmanship that has no financial stake in the contractor's work and no affiliation with any member of the contracted construction team.
Air entrainment Contractor's Guide to Quality Concrete Construction (4th ed.), Page 181
The characteristic all concrete exposed to freezing weather while in service should have, because air-entrained concrete is less susceptible to freezing damage than non-air-entrained concrete.
Camber Contractor's Guide to Quality Concrete Construction (4th ed.), Page 77
A slight upward curvature intentionally built into a form or structural element to compensate for deflection, shrinkage, and creep; the common rule of thumb is 1/4 inch per 10 feet of span.
Retarding admixture The Contractor's Guide to Quality Concrete Construction, Pages 72 and 82
An admixture that delays setting of concrete, increasing lateral pressure on vertical forms (chemistry coefficient CC of 1.2 versus 1.0 without retarder) and requiring lengthened form stripping times because strength gain is slower.
Soldier piles (soldier beams) Construction Planning, Equipment, and Methods (9th ed.), Chapter 3 — Soldier Piles and Lagging section
H-piles set in predrilled holes around the periphery of an excavation and grouted in place with weak concrete to support the excavation wall with close control of alignment and location.
Silt (dust) Construction Planning, Equipment, and Methods (9th ed.), Chapter 4 — Types of Geotechnical Materials section
Material finer than sand, with particles smaller than 0.075 mm but larger than 0.005 mm; particles smaller than 0.005 mm are clay.
Unit weight (density) test Contractor's Guide to Quality Concrete Construction (4th ed.), Page 149
A field test on fresh concrete that, used with batch weights and measured air content, gives a good indication of water content (water being the lightest component quickly affects unit weight); it is convenient and can be run with any air content test method.
Formulas to Know
Concrete or earth volume in cubic yards (with ordering rules)
Volume (cf) = length (ft) × width (ft) × depth (ft); cy = cf ÷ 27. Convert inch thicknesses to feet (4 in = 0.333 ft, 5 in = 0.4167 ft). Round UP when ordering: to the next whole yard (e.g., 14.8 → 15 cy; 9.81 → 10 cy; 11.85 → 12 cy; 17.65 → 18 cy) or to the next quarter yard where that rule is printed (5.10 → 5.25 cy). Table checks: one cubic yard covers 81 sq ft at 4 in thickness, and an 8-in wall takes 2.47 cy per 100 sq ft of wall area.Cubic yards of pipe bedding material for a trench
cy = trench length (ft) × trench width (ft) × bedding depth (ft) ÷ 27 (27 cf per cy)Square yards of filter fabric (or any area in SY)
SY = length (ft) × width (ft) ÷ 9; e.g., 250 ft × 15 ft = 3,750 sf ÷ 9 ≈ 416 SYCut/fill volume of one grid prism (Cross Section Method)
Average the cut or fill depths at the prism's four corners, then multiply by the prism base area; e.g., (2.3+0.9+0.8+2.3)/4 = 1.58 ft × 2,500 sf = 3,950 cfAverage lot elevation, elevation range, and fill volume
Average elevation = sum of the four corner elevations ÷ 4; max difference = highest corner − lowest corner; average fill depth = target elevation − average existing elevation; fill cy = lot area (sf) × average fill depth (ft) ÷ 27Formwork contact area
Contact area (sf) = length (ft) × form height (ft) × number of faces formed; e.g., 200 ft × 1.0 ft × 2 = 400 sf, or 2 × 136 ft perimeter × 8 ft = 2,176 sfLabor price with burden and overhead & profit
Base labor = contact area (sf) × unit rate; then × 1.25 for 25% burden; then × 1.15 for 15% O&P; e.g., 400 sf × $1.25 = $500 × 1.25 = $625 × 1.15 = $718.75Station number to distance
Distance from Sta 0+00 = (number left of the plus × 100 ft) + number right of the plus; Sta 2+50 = 250 ftSelecting backhoe digging depth (70% efficiency rule)
Required maximum digging depth = trench depth ÷ 0.70; e.g., 10 ft ÷ 0.70 ≈ 14 ft, since a backhoe works most efficiently within 70% of its maximum digging depthTrench excavation production in linear feet per hour
BCF per lf = width × depth; LCF per lf = BCF × (1 + swell %); LCF per set = LCF per lf × set length; cycles per set = LCF per set ÷ bucket LCF; time per set = (cycles × cycle time) + 15 sec move-up; sets per hour = 60 min ÷ minutes per set; lf per hour = sets per hour × set length (example: 2×4=8 BCF, ×1.3=10.4 LCF, ×8 ft=83.2 LCF, ÷8=10.4 cycles, (10.4×12)+15=139.8 s=2.33 min, 60÷2.33=25.75 sets, ×8 ft ≈ 206 lf/hr)