APEX General Contracting   109 East Park St.  Marquette, Michigan 49855     work 906.226.1035      cell 906.236.4242          

Remodeling on any scale, however, typically begins with the demolition of some portion of an existing structure.  Therefore, our work inherently creates a mountain of waste, unless high-grading this debris to its highest and best use becomes an important goal.  This it has. 

But demolition means to do away with; to end; and we are suggesting a new beginning for these products.  Not their grave, but their cradle.  So we choose to use the word deconstruction to describe our more careful process of demolition with a higher purpose; a higher good.  Goods that will continue to shelter us; goods that will become food for other manufacturing processes; goods that will prevent harvesting virgin materials to make more stuff

We Are Green

Repairing and upgrading an existing structure, as opposed to its demolition and disposal to create something new, typically shows a higher level of environmental responsibility. APEX can often achieve impressive levels of waste prevention, reduction and recycling. In general, maximizing the lifespan of existing building materials represents a more sustainable approach to providing shelter than does new construction. It is this environmental aspect of remodeling that has driven us to specialize in repairing and improving existing structures.

With respect to waste, we believe it is fair to say that repairing and upgrading an existing structure creates less waste than tearing down and building anew. No, it’s not perfect by any means. There are tradeoffs.  We understand that the great majority of the total energy (i.e. embodied energy; transportation; heating/cooling; disposal; etc.) used throughout a structure’s lifetime is utilized after construction.  So even though we may reduce waste by remodeling, an unintended consequence may be to create an energy-intensive structure overall, as compared to a new structure with superior thermal performance.