Dredge Project Spotlight

The team at Swanton Welding is equipped to handle all your needs within our facility. Swanton Welding is a partner in the success of any fabrication project brought to us. Recently, our fabrication team had the pleasure of working on a dredge project.

Project Specifications

Swanton Welding Company began working on this Dredge project in February of 2022 with a wrap-up in October of 2022. This dredge is a medium-sized dredge that offers excellent rates for dredging depths up to fifty feet. This type of dredge is typically used for ports, harbors, rivers, and inland waterway dredging projects, as well as beach restoration, land reclamation, island building, and flood control. This dredge has a compact design for rapid deployment and mobilization.

These dredges are equipped with two separate diesel engines, one of which is dedicated to the dredge pump alone. Swanton Welding built the float tanks and center tanks for this boat, and once we were at this stage in the project we performed the pressure testing for the float tanks and filled the center section with water to test for leaks. At completion, the float tanks were 63’ long, 10’ wide, and 5’ tall, weighing in at about 25,000 pounds each. The center tank is roughly 50’ long, 12’ wide, 10’ tall, and weighs in at 35,000 pounds.

Fabrication Specifications

Carbon steel was used for this project. The plate, angles, beams, channels, and piping were all constructed from the same high-quality carbon steel. For fabrication, a variety of methods were used throughout the project. At various points in the project our team utilized laser cutting, plasma cutting, press braking, rolling, Mig welding, Tig welding, machining, sandblasting, and painting. For finishing, the entire unit was blasted to an SP10 Near White finish and painted inside and out with marine paint.

Unique Project Needs

This dredging project required pressure testing and leak testing. To ensure optimal performance, the pressure in the float tanks must be utilized fully in the suction line. Without optimal pressure, there is an appreciable reduction in productivity. To know the dredge’s full capabilities, pressure testing needed to be performed. Leak testing, which in this case involved filling the entire center section with water, is also an essential piece of dredge fabrication to ensure safety and optimal use.

Swanton has the ability to source the materials, handle every stage of the fabrication process, manage the testing, and deliver the project to the final destination, and this dredge project was no different. We guarantee that our fabrication work will meet or exceed any customer’s needs and will leave every client happy with a job well done. If you’ve got a unique fabrication project, let’s talk about it! Contact Swanton Welding Company today for a quote.