Investing In Better Construction

When you and your crew land a bridge construction bid for the first time, it can be pretty exciting. Building a new bridge means a year, possibly two, of steady work for you and your crew. However, you may find that getting enough light and enough electricity to various parts of a bridge without electrocution and death is quite challenging. If you do not have an electrical contractor on board for this project, you may want to sub-contract out the electrical services. Here are some options that the electrical contractor may offer you.

Power Generators on Land

Power generators on land with grounded plugs and elevated electrical cables can work, but only for the very beginning stages of large bridge construction or ongoing construction on small bridges. The electrical contractor helping your team will bring lots of powerful generators to the scene. These generators use gas or propane so that they can operate without an electrical connection of their own.

The best ones have more than one grounded plug outlet located somewhere on the front, back or sides of the generator. After cranking up the generator, you and your crew can connect several three-pronged (grounded) plugs to this generator and then lift these cords upwards to the tops of the bridge pylons. When the pylons are already present and construction is moving along on the actual bridge, the cords can be looped around any exposed rebar or other secure surfaces to prevent them from falling into the water below.

Power Trucks

As the bridge construction gets about midway, and your crew is able to drive on top of it and/or over it, the electrician can offer power trucks. These trucks resemble a typical pick-up, except that it looks like it has a giant power generator in the flatbed area. These trucks generate their own power off of other battery sources within the truck and have multiple plug outlets for cords and tools as needed. The best part is that the power truck can be moved up and down the length of the bridge to feed the power needs wherever they are. You could also request more than one power truck.

Installing the Power for Bridge Lights and Elevation

When you are close to completing the bridge, the sub-contracted electrician will install the power boxes for the bridge's lights and lifting and lowering the grid (as applicable). Once the electrical boxes and lighting are in place, you may find that you have a built-in source of power to use for any tools and work that still need the electricity. You can do away with the other options.