Specialist geotechnical engineering consultancy

Stronger ground, lighter footprint.

GES supports engineering firms, infrastructure owners and agencies when the ground is the difficult part of the project: reactive and weak soils, stabilization design, slope and rockfall hazards, and investigations into distress.

Led by a Professional Engineer licensed in Texas. Available for assignments in the U.S. and internationally.

Discuss a project Our services
Illustrative soil profile A schematic boring log showing fill over expansive fat clay, silty sand and weathered shale, with arrows marking swell in the clay layer. 0 ft5101520 FillMixed clay and gravel Fat clay (CH)High plasticity; swellsand shrinks with moisture Silty sand (SM)Medium dense Weathered shaleSulfate testing advised
Schematic only. A profile typical of many heaving slabs and cracked pavements.

Dr. Bhaskar Chittoori, Ph.D., P.E. (Texas), ENV SP, F.ASCE, is the founder and principal of GES. He leads every engagement personally and reviews every deliverable before it is issued, drawing on geotechnical design practice and more than a decade as principal investigator on funded work for state transportation departments, federal agencies and industry.

About Dr. Chittoori

What we do

Eight services in three groups, each listed with a typical client need and what we deliver. A short list of other capabilities is on the Services page.

Soils, stabilization and sustainability

  • Expansive and problematic soils

    NeedHeave, shrinkage or sulfate risk on a site with reactive soils.

    DeliverableSoil behavior assessment with heave estimates and a treatment-alternatives assessment.

  • Stabilization mix design and quality assurance

    NeedChoosing, designing, specifying and verifying a treatment for weak or reactive subgrades.

    DeliverableMix design, specification, testing program and QA/QC plan.

  • Life-cycle carbon and cost assessment

    NeedTreatment options compared on carbon and life-cycle cost, not cost alone.

    DeliverableScreening report with ranked options and stated uncertainty.

Investigation and review

  • Forensic investigation

    NeedA slab, pavement, foundation or wall has cracked, heaved or settled, and the cause is unclear.

    DeliverableForensic findings report with remedial alternatives.

  • Slope and rockfall hazard assessment

    NeedA slope has moved or a cliff threatens property, and the cause or hazard footprint is unclear.

    DeliverableBack-analysis, hazard or runout map, and stabilization alternatives.

  • Independent peer review

    NeedA specialist second read before a geotechnical report, design or specification is relied on.

    DeliverableTechnical review memorandum.

Research and training

Why work with GES

Difficult ground rewards depth, independence and clear evidence.

Depth on difficult soils

Our principal has spent more than 20 years in geotechnical research and practice, with more than 100 publications and about $4.5 million in funded research behind the advice.

Independent advice

GES does not sell construction products or contracting services. Any commercial relationship relevant to an assignment is disclosed before work begins.

A published record on the problems we advise on

Swell prediction, sulfate heave, stabilization design, forensic study of recurrent pavement heave, and the carbon and cost of ground treatments are all in the published literature.

Selected experience

Work by our principal at previous institutions and employers, before GES was founded. Outcomes are as reported in the published record.

Montana Department of TransportationStatewide stabilization guidancePrincipal investigator, Boise State University; final report 2020
Problem
MDT needed protocols for deciding when and how to chemically stabilize problematic soils, including soils containing soluble sulfates.
Contribution
Led laboratory evaluation of lime and cement treatment on six Montana soils of different geology, with life-cycle cost comparison against MDT's current practice.
Application
Stabilization design protocols were delivered as a final report and technical manual. Treatment was viable for all six soils in the short term, but only three performed satisfactorily for long-term use, showing why mineralogy, moisture and curing must drive additive selection.

Sources: final report FHWA/MT-20-002/9389-522/FR · technical manual

Tarrant Regional Water DistrictEagle Mountain Dam, Fort Worth, TexasEngineer II, Parsons Brinckerhoff, 2009–2010
Problem
The water district commissioned a comprehensive seepage and stability assessment of the two 1930s hydraulic fill dams that impound Eagle Mountain Lake, to bring an aging dam up to current design standards.
Contribution
Seepage, settlement and stability analysis as part of the Parsons Brinckerhoff team, organizing field and laboratory data and building seepage and slope stability models.
Application
The assessment was followed by rehabilitation of the spillway dam, completed in 2013 with a grouting program to reduce seepage and new instrumentation. The project received the ASDSO National Rehabilitation Project of the Year award in 2014.

Sources: TRWD award announcement · Renewable Energy World (2015)

See all experience

Start with a free scope discussion

Tell us briefly about the site and the question you need answered. We'll arrange an initial conversation, at no charge, to understand the problem and confirm whether, and how, we can help. Technical findings and recommendations follow once an engagement is agreed.

You don't need to send project files to get in touch. Relevant reports, logs and data can be shared after first contact.