Smart Technology, Safe Remote Construction Projects

Federal agencies managing multiple construction engineering and inspection (CEI) projects across the United States face a difficult challenge: ensuring safety, efficiency and accountability when inspecting remote jobsites. With limited time and unpredictable site conditions, you need partners who can work independently, protect historic natural resources, and skillfully manage operations.

To get CEI projects in remote locations across the finish line, timing and technology are everything. It’s not about using the latest gadgets, but solving real problems by deploying the right technology at the right time. That means designing scalable, strategic solutions evolving with the project.

Specializing in tailoring technology solutions for construction and inspection sites, we’ve rolled out a wide range of tools to boost safety and inspection practices in remote areas, including:

• Satellite internet and wearable communication devices improving connectivity.
• GPS-based mobile applications providing more accurate measurements.
• Portable generators, battery backups and jump starters ensuring work continues when power is unavailable.
• Drones and vehicle telematics enhancing project monitoring.

Take the US 34 Granby to Grand Lake Resurfacing project near Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado. Midway through the project, a wildfire created hazardous smoke conditions, forcing a jobsite evacuation. At the same time, the COVID-19 pandemic caused a traffic surge, complicating logistics and safety planning. Local emergency services were on high alert, needing full access to manage firefighting operations.

Our onsite CEI team developed a unique safety plan addressing both wildfire and COVID-19 risks. This built trust with first responders and kept workers and travelers safe. Using mobile apps, we tracked the fire’s progress, monitored severe weather, and followed public health alerts in real time, ensuring proper evacuation protocols were followed. Despite the challenges, work safely resumed and was completed on time.

For the Eastern Federal Lands Resurfacing and Bridge Rehabilitation project in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, we implemented a mobile app to measure irregularly shaped pullouts during mill-and-overlay work. The team piloted the tool, comparing app-based measurements with traditional measuring devices. The results matched perfectly, and the app also significantly enhanced efficiency for our field personnel.

On the Western Federal Lands Stoddard Bridge project in Idaho, the field office is more than an hour from the jobsite, with only one way in and out of the area on a two-lane, dirt road. Therefore, we installed satellite internet service and used radios synchronized with park ranger channels in the Salmon-Challis National Forest. Throughout the project, this area has seen mudslides, landslides, snowstorms, icy roads, wildfires—you name it. By enabling reliable, consistent communication, these tools have helped us maintain contact with teams in the field and keep them safe.

As technology continues to evolve, especially with the rise of artificial intelligence, there are more ways to manage construction than ever before. However, it’s important to choose the right tools for the job. That’s why we carefully vet each tool for fit and function, helping you select the best ones. We also provide hands-on training, so your staff can use them with confidence.

Our team also scales technology based on site conditions and project goals. Not every location needs drones or robotics. Sometimes, the simplest solutions—like a well-organized document structure or a reliable backup power source—make the biggest impact. We start with what works and build from there, always in collaboration with our clients and teams in the field. In addition, because technology isn’t always available or reliable in remote areas, traditional backup plans are created.

By partnering with us, you can focus on strategic goals while we handle the field work—efficiently, independently, and with complete reliability.