HDD
HDD and ESG
Maxibor’s Electric Gallagher 660e maxi-rig (The Hulk).
Maxibor is taking steps to practically applying the use of HDD to help overcome the environmental challenges that communities now face, demonstrating how HDD can be an important part of the environmental solutions to achieve the goals and values of ESG.
E
SG is an acronym for Environmental, Social, and (Corporate) Governance, related to the standards of social responsibility in investing. Each category of ESG has numerous subcategories, allowing each business or investor to contextualize ESG in relation to their goals or values. The “E” principles in ESG cover: • Climate change and carbon emissions • Air and water pollution • Biodiversity • Energy efficiency • Deforestation • Waste management • Water scarcity. Maxibor is embracing these principles in its sustainability and environmental policies and procedures at a design, construction methodology development and HDD delivery level for each project it undertakes. Furthermore, Maxibor’s HDD sustainability initiatives are enabling asset owners and tier 1 principal contractors to respond to the accelerating community demand for demonstrated action around the key ESG environmental principles. The company’s collaborative approach is providing asset owners across the water and sewer, rail, power, gas, telecommunications, mining, defence, fuel, sea cable, data centre, hydrogen and renewables
Maxibor is working toward applying the use of HDD to overcome environmental challenges communities now face.
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sectors a readily available means to demonstrate evidence of sustainable infrastructure installation practices. Climate change HDD is an important part of climate change adaptation action to mitigate the impact of fire, wind, flood, inundation, drought and rain bombs. Simultaneous disasters in multiple locations, as happened with the 2019-20 bushfires, and now the 2022 floods, stretches the ability of infrastructure asset owners and emergency services personnel and resources to respond to these events in a timely and effective manner. Having key infrastructure such as electricity and telecommunications underground in times of extreme and higher frequency climate change induced events provides greater certainty of supply as they are safely away from the above ground impact of extreme weather events. Having infrastructure underground also increases community safety and reduces the recovery effort to re-establish essential services. The old above ground location of utilities as well as drainage is not sustainable – placement of infrastructure underground is a key part of the climate change mitigation and resilience solution. Design and construct of long (over 1,000 m) and larger diameter (800 mm to 1.6 m) HDD bores is where Maxibor can add most value to climate change mitigation projects. The
company’s design expertise in long, challenging pipeline installations and the capacity of its maxi-rigs like the Gallagher 660e, Gallagher 600, American Auger 660 and Vermeer D330x500 plus its powerful Gardner Denver PZ9 pumps with 1000HP engines Gardner Denver PZ8 pumps with 750 HP engines, provide a turnkey solution for infrastructure asset owners on these projects. The involvement of Maxibor’s HDD expertise in projects at the concept and early design stages is where its innovative solutions and experience will optimise Value to a project. Carbon emissions It is incumbent on all industries to reduce carbon emissions. The use of emissions friendly electric rig spreads such as can be provided by Maxibor with the Gallagher HDD660e maxi-rig (The Hulk), powerful pumps and drill mud recycling system assists in a cleaner and lower noise delivery of HDD services. Such an HDD delivery solution is ideal for well-established metropolitan areas. Even with using diesel powered plant, HDD will have a lower level of carbon emissions than open cut methods of pipeline installation. The key drivers of the lower emissions include: • Smaller site footprint and with mostly static site equipment • Less high emission machinery as no need for high emission open cut civil activities such as excavation, backfilling, compaction and reinstatement • Fewer traffic movements to dispose of surplus excavated materials and bring in replacement materials for drainage, compaction and rehabilitation • Less local traffic disruptions, diversion and extended waiting times equals less vehicle pollution around civil works that include HDD. Maxibor is able to measure its carbon emissions through a carbon calculator model. The emissions produced by undertaking the works using an open cut method can also be modelled to provide a measure of the carbon emissions benefit of using HDD. For carbon emissions to be reduced by the civil construction industry the way Maxibor delivers