Solar-Powered Construction Cameras & Infrastructure Projects
Swingen Construction Company is a fifth-generation, family-owned and operated heavy structures contractor located in Grand Forks, North Dakota, that’s been in business for over 100 years. Swingen is known throughout the midwest region for their work on concrete structures, bridges, water crossings, dams, flood walls, and more.
With a variety of new construction and replacement projects ahead of them, Swingen Construction Company started looking for an easy-to-use, yet affordable, construction camera solution to help monitor their projects spanning the midwest.
It’s really as simple as plugging in the camera.”
- Jason Odegard, Swingen Construction Company
SUMMARY:
Company: Swingen Construction Company
Location: Grand Forks, North Dakota
Owner: Swingen Family
VP of Estimating: Jason Odegard
Industry: Heavy Structures/Infrastructure Contractor
Project: Colton Avenue Bridge Replacement
Camera(s) Used: 2 iBEAM Fixed 4K Construction Cameras
Alternative Power Solution Used: 450W solar kit
Project Background:
Swingen Construction Company was awarded the contract to rebuild and modify the Colton Avenue Bridge in Burlington, North Dakota, by the Souris River Joint Board.
The project consists of clearing and relocating utilities near the construction site, as well as the total removal and replacement of the existing bridge. The new Colton Avenue Bridge will be lengthened (from 120 ft to 279 ft) and raised (7.5 ft), creating better conveyance of traffic on and around the bridge.
Additionally, a minor realignment of a nearby street and grade adjustments to Colton Avenue are included in the scope of the project.
The entire project plans can be viewed here.
Needs:
After being awarded the Colton Avenue Bridge project, Jason Odegard, VP of Estimating at Swingen Construction, started looking for a construction camera solution because he knew such a solution would be beneficial not only to the Swingen team, but to the city of Burlington, as well.
Having used construction camera solutions in the past, Jason and the team at Swingen were already familiar with the cost and time-saving benefits provided by construction cameras, as well as the general application of using them on a consistent basis.
For this particular project, Jason needed a simple, easy-to-install and use construction camera solution that was also affordable. As a competitive bidder on projects, cost is a major deciding factor when adopting new solutions for projects at Swingen Construction Company.
Additionally, due to the semi-remote location of the project in North Dakota and not having power immediately available on site, a solar solution was also desired so the cameras would have continuous power to document the entirety of the project, regardless of weather conditions.
With his specific needs defined, Jason turned to Google to start researching possible construction camera solutions.
The Problem(s):
The Colton Avenue Bridge project had a different brand camera solution specified in the bid documents, but Jason had a hunch that a more economical solution was available. Any alternative solution would need to be virtually identical in regards to features and ease of use in order for an exception to the specified camera to be made.
With this in mind, Jason reached out to the iBEAM team to see what could be done to accommodate his needs and budget.
Solution:
Once Jason connected with the team at iBEAM, an affordable camera solution quickly fell into place.
The iBEAM sales team was able to answer all of the questions Jason and Swingen had regarding cameras and solar power options, as well as how iBEAM solutions compared to the specified camera brand. This allowed Jason the opportunity to review the information with the project engineer to ensure the iBEAM solution would meet their needs and was an acceptable, if not better, alternative.
Jason and the project engineer quickly found that iBEAM offered a comparable solution in regards to features, but at an even better price than they had expected. That, coupled with the incredibly easy and intuitive set-up of the camera and solar solutions, was more than enough for Jason to make up his mind and push to deploy iBEAM cameras for the bridge replacement project.
Once the technical aspects of the camera were reviewed and accepted by the project engineer, Jason was able to put together a variance for the job specifications and have his iBEAM cameras and alternative power solution accepted in just one week!
“If you’re comparing apples to apples,” says Jason, “and everything in regards to features are the same or nearly the same, why would you pay more for a solution than you have to? With iBEAM, we found a feature-rich construction camera and solar power solution that’s easy for our team to use, but more importantly, is cost-effective and economical for the project and company.”
Results:
The technology is SUPER easy and you don’t have to be tech savvy at all to use this system. Just pull the trigger!”
- Jason Odegard, Swingen Construction Company
Jason and the team at Swingen Construction Company have been thoroughly impressed with their iBEAM Construction Camera and solar power solution. The cameras are constantly being used by a variety of team members to monitor the job site, as well as to document weather events for productivity and insurance purposes. Plus, as Jason notes, it never hurts to have a camera on site as a visible theft deterrent.
“The cameras and solar were SUPER easy to set up! We had no idea the cameras basically hooked themselves up to service once power was provided - we thought it would be way, way more complicated than that. It’s really as easy as plugging the camera in.”
“The quality of the camera, photos, and videos are fantastic, but the price was even better...very reasonable!”
Not only was the team at Swingen impressed by their iBEAM camera solution, but the city of Burlington was too! The city regularly shares updates on their website with citizens, directly from the iBEAM web portal.
Overall, Jason and the team at Swingen Construction Company have been very pleased with their iBEAM camera solution and solar power alternative, and look forward to using them on a variety of projects in the future.
Final Thoughts:
- Jason Odegard, Swingen Construction Company