Eco-Friendly Elements to Consider When Hiring Marine Contractors

Construction & Contractors Blog

When you're hiring commercial marine contractors, there are numerous elements you need to consider. In particular, if you're concerned about the environmental impact of your project, you may want to look for a company who's committed to environmentally friendly practices. As you talk with different prospects, here are some elements you may want to ask about.

Excavation Techniques

Whether you're hiring someone for marine or land-based construction, you may want to ask about their excavation techniques. As a general rule of thumb, the more focused the excavation is and the less ground you disrupt, the more environmentally friendly the process is. In marine construction, a popular excavation technique is called dredging. This involves moving sediment to increase the usable space in the water.

Noise Levels

Unfortunately, excess noise under water can kill fish, prevent marine mammals such as whales from communicating and cause other damage. Ideally, you should talk with the companies you interview about what they do to minimise noise pollution. Some companies construct certain elements off site to avoid unnecessary noise near the sea. Others use special construction techniques to absorb sound. For instance, they might encase piles into hollow rods so that the pocket of air between the two elements dulls the sound created by pounding the piles into the ground.

Alternative Energy Integration

Most projects need some power. Depending on what you are building, you may need to power boat ramps, lights or other items, and with commercial projects, you may need to supply electricity to your tenants. To make this possible, you may want to look for marine contractors who can utilise alternative energy sources such as windmills or solar power.

Recycled or Environmentally Friendly Materials

Also consider asking potential contractors about where they source their supplies. In particular, can they use recycled steel, local materials or other eco-friendly supplies? You may also want to ask about rust-proof coatings to ensure they don't release toxins into the water or cause other issues.

Corporate Social Responsibility

In addition to talking about what the marine contractors do during the project, you should ask about their corporate social responsibility (CSR) plan. More and more companies are embracing CSR's. Essentially, they are an outline of what the company is doing to help society. That may include anything from donating money to charity to using environmentally friendly building practices.

To learn more, contact a marine contracting company to ask about their environmentally friendly practices today.

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4 June 2018

Colin's Construction Blog

Hello, my name is Colin and this is my construction blog. When people think of the construction industry, they often just imagine guys in hard hats building brick walls. While this is a popular image of the industry, it doesn't reflect the true diversity of different contractors and tradesmen who are involved in a construction project. Lasy year, my wife and I decided to construct our dream home. I had to arrange visits of plumbers, roofers, electricians, surveyors and home builders in order to get the job done. I learnt a lot during that experience, so I decided to start this blog.