Did you enjoy playing blocks as a child? Maybe you liked stacking them up and then letting them tumble down. Or maybe you enjoyed creating the most elaborate structures you could dream of. People with this affinity for playing blocks often find that they like working as contractors and construction workers. After all, these jobs are sort of like playing blocks for grownups! You get to build things, albeit these things are much more complex than block towers. Sometimes, you also get to knock things down. If you like this analogy as much as we do, then we invite you to read more about construction and contractors on this website.
Some construction projects that involve bodies of water have to deal with excessive sediment. Removing it is possible through dredging, which is a construction activity you can succeed with if you take these precautions.
Select an Optimal Dredging Process
There are a couple of ways dredging can happen around a body of water for a construction project. These include mechanical, suction, and suction-mechanical dredging. You need to review the processes of each and then compare them with your own dredging site and needs.
For instance, if you're primarily dealing with just loose debris, suction dredging may be the best method for alleviating this sediment from the bottom of a waterway. Whereas if there is debris that is really compacted and thus not able to be sucked up so easily, mechanical dredging might be the tactic that ends up working best.
Prepare a Storage Structure for Removed Sediment
After using a dredging machine to remove sediment from water, you need a designated place to put it. A storage structure is going to be needed until you arrange for heavy-duty trucks to pick up the sediment and dispose of it in an eco-friendly way.
Make sure you choose a storage structure that's not only big enough to support all of the sediment you remove but also is durable enough to hold the weight of this sediment without falling victim to structural issues. You may need multiple storage solutions too if you have a lot of sediment to remove around a pond, lake, or river.
Create Contingencies for Emergency Situations
The best way to plan for emergency situations during construction dredging is to create contingency plans. Then you and others involved in this work will know how to respond to different scenarios and that's key in reducing their impact going forward.
You just need to look at your own construction dredging process as a whole and see how it could be affected by different obstacles. Maybe it's the dredger breaking down or not getting through sediment with a particular machine. Contingency plans will keep you prepared for these potential obstacles and then your team's response can be swift and meaningful.
There are times in construction when bodies of water have to be dredged. If you're completing one of these projects, make sure you have a good grasp on important factors like the equipment being used, the number of professionals involved, and ways to keep construction site dredging safe.