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which is about 200,000 cubic yards, that
will be pumped to the specified site locat-
ed at the facility.”
Once that work is completed, McLean
will build a 3,000-foot retention dike.
“Following us, another subcontractor
will place rip rap on the outboard face
of it,” Phillips says.
“Then, following that, about 585,000
to 780,000 cubic yards of material will
be dredged out of the inside of this facility
to build the dikes,” he continues.
“Finally, we’ll finish off the side slopes
and dress it up to make it look like the pro-
posed dike.”
Making it Look Easy
Phillips says the greatest challenge of all
on this project is defining where and if
there is enough suitable material to work
with in the first place.
“You have to strip many feet off of the
river bottom to get the good material need-
ed to build the dike,” he explains.
“It is extremely important to the owner
that we recover as much good material
from this site as possible, and it is McLean’s
responsibility to work with the owner
and help them achieve the best possible
goal that can be achieved within the con-
fines of the project site.”
These questions often plague marine
contractors on projects, but companies
unfamiliar with the trade would be baf-
fled at the complexities of McLean’s
work, Phillips says.
“Such things as building a footing for a
structure on land is totally different when
you place it in the water,” he notes. “Then,
to add to the problem, moving it to a
minus-53-foot elevation.
“This requires months of preparation
to build a cofferdam structure, excavate
the structure and then place a tremie con-
crete footing – even before you start with
the actual footing that you really need to be
building,” Phillips adds.
True Professionals
Adding to these challenges are the harsh
weather conditions of Maryland’s relent-
less winters.
“We often have ice to deal with, frozen
pumps, walkways, etc., that need constant
attention,” Phillips states. “We have to
tie off in areas that are true hazards.
MCLEAN CONTRACTING CO.
“We build every crane we have, and
we have to maintain our equipment
from the ice in the wintertime, while
keeping the barges ice-free.
Marine construction also provokes sev-
eral safety hazards, Phillips adds.
This is where McLean’s award-win-
ning safety program comes in handy.
According to the company, its most
valuable resource is its employees and
McLean makes every effort to ensure
they remain safe.
In April, McLean received three awards
from the National Safety Council in recog-
nition of its stellar safety record – one
being the Million Work Hours Award,
given to the firm after operating for more
than 1 million man hours without occupa-
tional injury or illness.
“There are a lot of fall hazards in cof-
ferdam construction, especially in this
time of year,” Phillips says. “It’s winter
and it’s windy. It’s fairly open water and
you get a lot of wind and waves and
shipping traffic.
“But we’re a marine contractor, we’ve
been doing marine work for over 100 years,
and we know what we’re doing.” ■
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