PRE-CONSTRUCTION WIND SPEED AND WEATHER MONITORING

COLLECTING WEATHER DATA FROM MULTIPLE PROJECT SITES MAY SEEM LIKE A TEDIOUS AND TIME-CONSUMING ACTIVITY BUT THERE ARE BENEFITS.

Construction companies are aware of the risks posed by harsh weather in project sites especially when tower cranes are involved. However, weather risk management tends to focus on projects already in construction, disregarding the sites of upcoming projects. Even with a reliable monitoring system in place, planning for unfavourable weather is difficult when there is no previous data for the site.

PRE-CONSTRUCTION WEATHER MONITORING

gives Construction Managers an idea of what to expect and they can implement risk mitigation measures from the start of the construction process. Contingency measures can be optimised before starting the project instead of following a trial-and-error process when construction activities have already started, which is more expensive and risky.

Although weather forecasts provide warnings several days in advance, their data is very general and does not reflect site-specific conditions. Consider that terrain features affect local wind patterns and a project site can experience dangerous gusts even on days when the weather forecast announces moderate winds.

Harsh weather can have severe consequences such as crane collapses and structural damage but these events are rare. For most construction projects, the main issue caused by unpredictable and severe weather is downtime.

WIND SPEED AND PRECIPITATION

Wind speed and precipitation tend to be the weather variables with the highest impact on construction projects. The chance of accidents increases dramatically during gusts especially if a crane is operating at the project site. On the other hand, excessive rainfall can flood project sites especially when excavations are underway. Most construction companies use wind fences and dewatering pumps to mitigate the effects of this.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF HAVING ADVANCE DATA?

When weather data for a construction site is available in advance, design engineers and Construction Managers can make better decisions. The following are some example of how pre-construction monitoring data can be used:

• Managers have a better idea of the weather downtime they can expect during the construction process. This way, they can negotiate contracts with realistic deadlines.
• Structural design engineers can check if their weather assumptions for building design are realistic by comparing them with actual site data.
• Pre-construction wind and weather risk management plans can be developed more accurately.

DATA COLLECTION DOESN’T HAVE TO TEDIOUS

Collecting weather data from multiple project sites may seem like a tedious and time-consuming activity. Raw weather data from multiple sites can overwhelm project managers and engineers due to the sheer volume of individual measurements. Pre-processed and accessible live data metrics and charts are much more useful for designers and decision-makers.

Data collection is simplified greatly with a weather monitoring solution that includes live GSM connectivity and cloud-based data storage and software, such as WINDCRANE.

Please contact us for more information on our systems and to discuss any pre-construction data you may require for your own Pre-construction wind and weather risk management plans.

CONTACT US

www.windcrane.com

+44 141 585 6496

info@windcrane.com