Historic Buildiing Restoration With Dry Ice Blast Cleaning

Historic building restoration requires serious considerations in a multitude of different processes. One of which, is the decision to remove and replace original building materials and structural elements or attempting to restore original materials and structural elements by carefully cleaning them.

When removing and replacing materials in a historic restoration project, much of the beauty and value of the original structure is forever lost. Modern building materials will never aesthetically match up to the original structural look and feel of an old historic building. And secondly, removing and replacing old, dirty or contaminated structural elements is an extremely expensive proposition; adding much undue cost and time to the project.

Of course, there will be situations that require certain elements of the historic structure are replaced. Not every element of an old historic building can be cleaned, reused or repurposed. But ultimately, the more materials that can be salvaged, cleaned and reused, the more successful the restoration project will be.

What Cleaning Method Offers The Best Results?

Once the structural engineers have determined what materials need to be replaced and what materials can be cleaned in place, it's time to decide which cleaning method is going to fulfill all the requirements.

To thoroughly clean and restore a historic structure, the chosen cleaning method must be:

    Safe: Construction projects are inherently dangerous. Adding risk to a restoration project by introducing a cleaning method that adds secondary waste, unnecessary chemicals, solvents or puts other trades at risk is definitely not a good option.

    Ecologically friendly: Using solvents, acids and harsh cleaning chemicals needlessly endangers operators, trades, secondary personnel and ultimately the environment. Historic restoration is rooted in the idea of saving and protecting our natural resources and historic structures. The appropriate cleaning method will respect and fulfill that goal without damage.

    Economical: With all the choices available, using the most effective and efficient means to clean is an obvious requirement. Dry ice blasting is the obvious choice here.

    Efficient: Time is money. Dry ice blasting is fast, effective and very efficient.

    Mobile: In order to clean historic structures in place, without dismantling, moving, replacing and rebuilding crucial elements, the cleaning method must be able to go to where the problems are.

    Clean: Does your cleaning method make a mess? CO2 blast cleaning does not add any secondary waste to the project and containment is a breeze, making clean-up fast and easy.

Once the structural engineers have decided what can be cleaned in place and you have chosen the best cleaning method to keep your project profitable, now it's time to find a responsible cleaning contactor to do the work.

In our next installment, we will explore what to look for in a dry ice cleaning contractor.

Advantages of Portable Buildings

Portable buildings are basically buildings that are manufactured in factories and the parts are shipped to the building site where they are assembled. Portable buildings are not always portable once they're constructed, the only reason they're named this is because they're shipped to you.

Advantages of portable office buildings:

There are plenty of advantages of portable office buildings, let's take a look at some of the many advantages that these marvels bring us:

They're cheaper

Before you think of anything else, you should know that these are a whole lot cheaper than building one from scratch using all the raw materials usually needed. The main reason being: less manual labour that is needed when most of the parts are manufactured in a factory.

Also, the factories would be able to manufacture them much faster than a team of individuals would ever be able to, so they can reduce the margin of their profits on each piece and still make a good profit on the whole. That's the reason you can get them at a cheaper rate.

Your choice on materials

The materials used in the construction vary and you can choose what you need. There are plenty of options and the manufacturers usually build a variety of structures. However, if you're not happy with what's being offered you could always give them a custom order.

Quick construction

Very often your office would need to shift due to unavoidable reasons and in such cases you may need a building to be built within months. In such cases you could opt for portable buildings as your workers would be able to get them up within weeks.

They're ready for use

Most of the portable office buildings that are manufacture come equipped with everything needed for your office such as electric connections, the necessary ducts and a lot of other necessary instalments too. Therefore, you would not need an expert electrician to plan the ducting system for your newly built office.

Expand your office instantly

You may already have a huge office set up, but as your business grows there's going to be a need to expand even further. If that's the case you would also need more office space and portable office buildings would be the best option.

The above reasons are just a few of the many reasons as to why portable offices are superior to the ordinary buildings. There are plenty of other benefits that you would receive when you opt for this kind of construction.

What Are Portable Office Buildings?

If at all you want your business to be successful you're going to need to make sure that it keeps growing. Any phase where growth is halted is usually considered as a failure in the business world.

However, expanding a business in today's world is really difficult not just because of the competition; but, also the lack of time and space to construct your office buildings. Yes, with the expansion of your business you're also going to need more office room and to do this you would either have to rent out an office or build one up from scratch.

Portable office buildings are now taking over the world by storm due to their ease of construction and cheaper rates. They're basically buildings that are manufactured in a factory and transported to the building site in parts where they are re-assembled. That's the main reason as to why they're usually used when people need temporary office space.

They're really easy to construct

These buildings are really easy to construct as there's not much that you need to do. There's absolutely no wood that needs to be cut and no metal needs to be forged. To top it up, most of the portable buildings come along with in built ducts and electrical sockets as well. There's no need to hire an electrician to set up your AC's and computers!

Don't use them just for temporary purposes

Even though most businesses use portable office buildings just for temporary purposes, you shouldn't do that. If you were smart you would use them as a permanent office site as they're cheaper, possess the same strength as other constructed buildings and are really easy to construct.

They're huge and small at the same time

Usually whenever people think of portable buildings they consider them to be something really small, more like a garage. Of course, you do get portable garages, but when it comes to portable buildings you've got a lot of options to pick from.

There are a few that are multi-storey apartments and others really huge offices and most of them are made up of a metal skeleton. But, if you want your home or office to be built up of wood there are plenty of wood based portable buildings too.

However, if you do opt for a portable building and are planning on using it for a long term, go ahead and pick the metal skeletons as they're sturdy and can withstand blizzards, storms and many other natural phenomena.

10 Reasons to Select a Steel Building

If you are looking for an inexpensive, stylish and durable building that is fast to build then you should go for Steel Building. There are many benefits of having offices, residential and other structures made from steel and some of them are listed below:

1. Stylish Modern Designs:

Steel buildings are no longer just boring blocks of metal. The new age metal buildings are made with modern and stylish designs and can have a look of any traditional exterior.

2. Environment Friendly:

It is an environment friendly and it is made from steel which can be recycled. It helps in conservation of energy and also reduces the demand of wood which causes deforestation.

3. Durable Structures:

One of the key benefits of steel building is that it is made of durable and prefabricated material. It need low maintenance and come with 40 years warranty.

4. Speedy Construction:

As these buildings are made according to the specifications given by the builders they come with prefabricated pieces ready to install. Kit to construct the building is delivered in just few weeks time. It is also very easy to put up the structure; anyone can do it by following the instructions from the manual and with little help from the crew.

5. Cost Savings:

Steel buildings allow cost cutting at every stage. First it saves on labor cost as the buildings are fast to construct. Once it is ready to use is helps to save on maintenance cost. The need of renovating the building is also eliminated so such expenses can also be avoided.

6. Better than Conventional Buildings:

It is better than other conventional buildings. Problems like pest infestation are not seen with metal buildings. They are better at resisting fire, damages caused by rains and other natural forces like hurricanes, tornados and earthquakes.

7. Long Life of the Buildings:

Steel buildings are made from inorganic material and can withstand harsh weather conditions. They are mildew and mold resistant and have longer life. It is also easy to make structural changes. Walls can be added or deleted without affecting the strength of the building.

8. Insurance Benefits:

Insurance premiums can be availed at discounted rates as steel is known for its sturdy and fire resistant qualities. Even the construction insurance is needed for a shorter time as metal buildings are constructed and put up faster than other buildings.

9. All Types of Buildings:

Steel buildings can be used to make all types of structures including social, commercial and residential buildings. Kit buildings are used to make schools, shops, business buildings, homes, industrial parks, and even churches.

10. Energy Efficient:

Energy efficiency is an inherent quality of a steel building. Metal roofing and siding reflect sunlight and heat; this keeps the interiors cooler so there is less need of using air conditioners. They keep the interior temperatures moderate during winters so use of heater is also reduced.

Steel buildings are beneficial to its users in more than one way and that is why they are becoming so popular in the cities.

Green Architects: Why You Need Them

Green architects are becoming increasingly common because more people want to do right by the government. Green buildings are popping up all over the world as people wish to use sustainable materials and re-appropriate materials. When you are looking to make your mark on the environment and be able to promote yourself as green, you need to find architects that know how to give you what you want.

First, it's important to know that there are essentially two types of green architects. The first is an architect that is going to build a home or building using sustainable and green materials. From the foundation to the roof, everything can be green. This will ensure you are environmentally friendly from start to finish. The other type of architect is one that will use adaptive reuse. This is where you choose a pre-existing building and use the entire structure for your new building. You can turn just about any building into what you want.

There are benefits to both types of green architects. You need to determine which one is going to be best for you. Do you want to build something from the ground up or do you already have your eye on a property that just doesn't meet your current needs? The latter can be more affordable because you don't have to build everything. It also eliminates the need to use a bulldozer on a perfectly good building. However, if you want to say you used sustainable and green materials in every part, you may need to start from the beginning.

Green architects are going to be able to guide you into the right decision based upon what you want to build, where you want to build and what your budget is. If you want to build on the waterfront and there are already pre-existing buildings and no empty lots, then it would be advantageous for you to consider adaptive reuse architecture. There's no need to bulldoze if you can use the building. If you feel the need to bulldoze, you're better off finding an empty lot to save money and help the environment.

When you work with green architects, you have to find out where their strengths lie. You don't want to use someone who specializes in adaptive reuse when you are building from the ground up if they aren't familiar with where to get all of the sustainable materials you want to use. Take your time and ask a lot of questions - including how much it will all cost.

The environment needs all the help it can get. While some companies are looking at solar panels and water conservation modules, you can choose to build your entire structure with the environment in mind. If you want to add solar panels and water conservation features in your building, then you can choose to do that as well. When you work with green architects, they will guide you through the entire process to help you make the most environmentally sound decisions every step of the way.