Piling Pipe Driving

A machine called a pile driver is used to drive the piles into the ground in order to provide the building support. It typically consists of a crane mounted on treads, like a crawler tractor or an excavator, and runs on a two- stroke piston diesel engine. A cylinder connects the top of the pile to the piston, which serves as a weight. A cable raises the weight and then drops it via quick release. The resulting compression of air causes it to become heated, at which point the cylinder receives an injection of diesel fuel, igniting the air. The ignition causes the energy of the falling weight to be shifted to the pile head, and the weight goes back up, drawing fresh in. Then the cycle repeats itself.

Other pile drivers use hydraulic power, either a hammer or a press- in. The latter system is in common use especially where vibration will be a major problem.Pile driving is a very ancient method of building construction, and naturally so is the equipment used to do that kind of work.