• Feature Story- Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge

ALDRIDGE BUILDS:

Grid Pressure Relief

The US power grid is under increasing pressure as it struggles to keep up with increased electricity demands. Work is already underway across the country to upgrade aging infrastructure to enhance reliability and alleviate overall pressure on the grid.

On the West Coast, Aldridge is replacing wood poles with steel for numerous transmission line rebuild projects throughout Arizona, Washington, and Oregon. Additionally, many areas are shifting to the use of renewable energy as an alternative source to help reduce pressure on the grid. On a recent project in Oregon, we brought power from a wind farm to the grid with an overhead transmission line.

Manhole Assessment Program | Washington, DC

Aldridge has entered year three of a multi-year initiative to assess more than 60,000 manholes and vaults across our nation’s capital. The program will help develop a preventative maintenance strategy, focused reliability improvements, and create a transactional history of the targeted assets. An added benefit of this program is real-time reporting that provides access to 360 degree and thermal photography for crews to review during emergency conditions.

Disaster Response | Louisiana

In September 2021, one of the most powerful and rapidly intensifying hurricanes to hit the United States made landfall in Louisiana. Hurricane Ida, a Category 4 storm with winds of 150 mph, ravished Port Fourchon and its surrounding areas, destroying 75% of the existing infrastructure. Aldridge crews were part of the efforts that restored power to the area. Our work included the installation of corrugated metal pipe (CMP) which will make future repairs more manageable.

500kV Rebuild | Florida Everglades

As part of a 500kV tangent structure rebuild program in Florida, a number of the structures that need repair/replacement have been deemed as efficient and required completion ahead of the 2021 hurricane season. This work was prioritized to prevent future damage to an already susceptible coastal city. Many of this line’s foundation locations are inaccessible by vehicular access. A combination of amphibious equipment, barges, and boats is being used to reach the marine right-of-way.

GIS Substation | Washington, DC

Aldridge was contracted to furnish and install the electrical components for a greenfield 69/138kV gas-insulated substation (GIS). The demand for power is growing and with little to no room available for large substations in urban environments, more and more utilities are utilizing GIS. Beyond the space saving benefits, GIS substations offer significantly less maintenance, a safer product with less potential for arc flash, and enhanced security.

Specialty Equipment

Since our inception, our strategy has always been to “Recruit and Develop the Industry’s Most Passionate and Creative People to Take on the Industry’s Most Challenging Work.” These creative team members dream up our industry’s leading innovations that challenge the way infrastructure work is executed which fuels the Aldridge innovative spirit.

For over 30 years, Aldridge has been providing innovative solutions to the rail industry. One of our most utilized pieces is a modified rail tie crane with specialized attachments that allow threading of the contact rail onto the opposite track when working on the third rail. Compared to the standard method of cutting rail in sections, this method allows crews a safer, smoother installation process.

Conduit Pulling Sled | California

Work sequencing can be a challenge for any construction project. For Aldridge, it provides an opportunity to utilize innovative installation methods and specialty equipment. For use on a streetcar project, our innovations team created a conduit sled that eliminates the need to thread conduit within a concrete rebar reinforcement. This innovation tripled our productivity versus a traditional method.

Amphibious Fleet | Florida

First used for a project in the Everglades, our IMT 190 Drill Rig was outfitted with the world’s largest set of pontoon tracks to reach over eight miles of transmission line only accessible by water. Today, our specially designed amphibious fleet includes rigs, excavators, barges, pontoon sleds, and custom airboats to handle any complex project on land or water.

Skid Steer Grapple Attachment | Midwest

Our drilling job sites are home to a number of pieces of heavy materials and tooling that need to be safely moved or relocated. To ensure positive load control, a custom attachment for a Skid Steer was designed and fabricated. This attachment allows for a hydraulically controlled “claw” to clamp down on tooling and materials and eliminates the need for an additional groundman and a potential line of fire safety hazard.