Pearlman to Receive ASCE’s 2020 Wallace Hayward Baker Award for Ingenious Innovation in the Field of Ground Modification

Alumnus Seth Pearlman (BS '78, MS '79), President and CEO of Menard Group USA, has been selected by the Geo-Institute Board of Governors at the American Society of Civil Engineers to receive the 2020 Wallace Hayward Baker Award for Ingenious Innovation in the Field of Ground Modification.

Pearlman was chosen for this award due to his substantial contributions in the practice of design build ground improvement. The prestigious Wallace Hayward Baker Award was established in the year 2000 by the Geo-Institute in recognition of the creative and innovative contributions of Wallace Hayward Baker. It is given annually in recognition of ingenious innovation in the field of ground modification. Emphasis is placed on resourceful development of a new technology or the creative application of existing technology to achieve field performance not previously demonstrated.

The award will be presented to Pearlman at the Geo-Institute meeting in February of 2020 in Minneapolis. Commenting on the award announcement Pearlman stated, “This is a great honor, and it is humbling to know that my contributions have been appreciated.”

Pearlman has participated in some of the most challenging ground improvement projects in the United States. These include complex highway interchanges over very soft ground, such as Exit 14A on I-78 in Bayonne, New Jersey and large warehouse support projects on both soft ground and highly contaminated landfills, such as the 900,000 sq. foot Pulaski warehouse in Jersey City, NJ.

Leading Menard in North America allows Pearlman to mentor and develop young leaders that service local markets in much of the US and Canada. Pearlman says he enjoys developing these young managers by teaching them creativity and the fundamentals of geo-structural engineering.

Pearlman has more than 40 years of engineering experience with the last 33 being in the geotechnical design and build construction industry. He earned a BS and an MS in Civil Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh and is a registered professional engineer in Pennsylvania and Virginia. He is a member of the Geo-Institute, American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), American Concrete Institute (ACI), American Society of Highway Engineers (ASHE), Design Build Institute of America (DBIA), Engineers Society of Western Pennsylvania (ESWP), The Moles, and past president for the Deep Foundations Institute (DFI) . He serves on an Advisory Council to the Carnegie Mellon University Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering.

Pearlman was previously awarded the 2014 ASCE’s Henry L. Michel Award for Industry Advancement of Research and the 2016 Alumni Service Award from Carnegie Mellon University.