The extreme changes in weather happen frequently and affect the construction industry in many ways. It’s no longer simply about ensuring construction workers are dressing appropriately for the temperatures and safety. There’s much more to it.
Here are three reasons why the construction industry needs to pay attention to climate change.
1. Climate Change Impacts Construction
New laws setting higher building standards have come about because of climate change. Buildings need to endure very hot and very cold weather, heavy rains and flood, stronger winds, and the sudden huge swings in temperatures. Earthquakes have shaken cities that don’t typically experience them. Buildings need to withstand those too.
Punishing weather can cause construction project delays. When that happens, costs pile up and profits drop. Sometimes the weather can damage work in progress and mess up the entire timeline of the project. Construction companies can take proactive steps to minimize damage and cost. The key is careful planning and putting risk management plans, contracts, and insurance protections in place.
2. Construction’s Effects on the Environment
Mining activities pollute the air and scientist believe it’s one of the factors causing climate change. The construction industry can ease its contribution to climate change and help the environment. One way to do this is to investigate new construction materials
that use recycled substances. This reduces the carbon footprint. Construction companies can lower emissions further by using scrap metals. Scrap metal recycling delivers economic benefits and helps the environment. Choosing recycled metal over original products contributes more than $117 billion to the economy.
Mining for raw materials produces chemical waste that could end up in the water supply. Scrap metal recycling requires 60 percent less energy than manufacturing metal from ore and it does not affect the water supply.
3. Climate Change Affects Construction Site Security
Another thing to consider is construction security. Extreme weather can affect security guards’ ability to monitor a construction site. This is where remote video surveillance has an advantage. It can keep eyes on the site 24/7 even in severest weather conditions.
The following video was captured in very windy and cold conditions. Our trained operators, located in a warm, dry environment, saw a couple of individuals enter a construction site after hours. They notified the police who arrived and made an arrest.
In implementing a construction site security plan, verify you have weatherproof cameras that are secure enough to tolerate wind and punishing temperatures. When looking into implementing construction site security, ask vendors how their security system handles extreme weather and sudden climate changes.
A proactive security solution that can withstand everything Mother Nature throws at it can help safeguard your construction site. Trained operators who do live video monitoring
watch your site in real-time and can catch events as they happen. They do it for a fraction of the cost of a traditional security guard. Such a system and service can pay for itself within a few months.
For more information about our proactive construction site security solutions, contact us.
