Benefits Of A Skyline Dredge
A skyline dredge is a versatile piece of mechanical equipment that removes sediment from both water and land. Reminiscent of diggers, but much taller and larger, skyline dredges allow construction companies to remove challenging types of soil in often awkwardly-shaped bodies of water without harming the environment.
Whether your dredge is a mechanical or a suction dredge, the operator will not be able to visualize the surface being excavated. An experienced dredge operator can "feel" the differences between surfaces. Often this means stopping progress and changing the approach to the dredging operation.
Skyline dredges are specialized so that they can scoop out various types of sediment at once. Like any dredging operation, using a skyline dredge is complex, requiring many levels of training to operate. The main benefit is its operator and the machine's versatility.
Here are three other reasons skyline dredging is beneficial over suction or traditional mechanical dredges.
Suction Dredges Can Clog
You might think that suctioning sediment from the bottom of a body of water is more efficient than scooping. The issue is that suction dredges suck the soil through a piping system. If the soil composition is especially challenging, then the suction dredge can clog. This keeps the project from moving forward.
What Constitutes Challenging Soil?
Any soil that is made of clay, gravel, or other aggregates can be challenging to dredge. Suction can clog, but skyline dredging scoops the sediment. Mixed sedimentation can be scooped out together. Buried layers of clay and larger aggregates like gravel or concrete pose no problem with a skyline's scoop. However, larger aggregates clogging a suction pipe are sure to impede progress.
Progress, Not Limitations
Skyline dredging overcomes the limitations of mechanical dredging. Excavating oddly-shaped bodies of water, protecting regulated land, and supporting reclamation projects can all benefit from using skyline dredging. Skyline dredges are easier to move around a construction site.
However, operating a skyline dredge requires specialized skills. These skills not only include operational and mechanical skills, but strategy. For instance, you must be able to adapt to changing conditions and understand hydrographic surveys. These surveys may show that one part of a body of water may require a different approach than another part.
Time Is Money
Dredging projects operate on budgets. There are no do-overs since excavated soil is already removed. If the dredging strategy must change, then the dredging team must determine how to proceed to keep on time and on budget. Skyline dredges are beneficial for keeping project timelines
