Aluminium is rapidly becoming the preferred material for poles specified for Smart Cities in Australia as well as globally. The popularity of aluminium is due to several factors including superior longevity, reduced installation and maintenance costs and environmental sustainability benefits of aluminium over traditional steel poles.

Marine-grade structural aluminium (6000 Series alloys) has the equivalent strength of mild steel but will last up to four times longer with minimal to no maintenance requirements.   These benefits are especially evident in a marine or coastal setting.  Municipalities and local governments have a lot to gain from switching to aluminium smart light poles as they only have to pay for them once in 100 years whereas a steel pole has only a twenty-five year life cycle.

A third of the weight of steel, aluminium poles are less expensive to transport and also install.  Faster installation times using half the labour delivers substantial savings on installation costs for a project.

Aluminium boasts half the carbon footprint of steel delivering environmental sustainability benefits.  Aluminium is also 100% recyclable and recycling requires 5% of the energy used to create new aluminium, making recycling aluminium highly efficient. Remarkably 75% of the aluminium ever produced is still in use today.

Aluminium is available in a range of finish options, including durable anodising or powder coating in a wide range of colour options to suit any project specifications.  It is worth asking what material is being specified for the smart poles in your next project.