Texas Children's Hospital and its family of medical facilities at Houston's Texas Medical Center are welcoming a new addition. The Pavilion for Women is a $575-million facility that will bring maternity and neonatal care capabilities to the hospital. Taking the pavilion from conception to birth is the most ambitious construction project in the hospital's history and the centerpiece of its $1.5-billion Vision 2010 expansion program. The 796,000-sq-ft, 90-bed facility combines an architecturally challenging design, a two-story signature pedestrian bridge that crosses a street and rapid transit line and one of the deepest excavations ever done at the Texas Medical Center
More than a year before the first exhibits open at the Perot Museum of Nature and Science, a massive jigsaw puzzle is on display at the construction site in Dallas' Victory Park.
Three years into the economic downturn, many specialty contractors aren't sure what to make of today's market, much less where it is headed. Although the construction industry has weathered its fair share of cycles over the years, top brass at the region's largest firms have never been through a down period that lasted quite this long. This is new territory, even for the industry's most-seasoned executives. With private dollars still squeezed and public money running low, there is no clear path to long-term recovery, says Harold MacDowell, CEO of TDIndustries, Dallas.“It's a muddle-through economy,” he says. “It's going to be
Barry Moore, president of Brandt, a Carrollton, Texas-based mechanical, electrical and plumbing contractor, makes it perfectly clear: “We said that we were not going to participate in the recession.” While the downturn has been a heavy financial blow for many specialty contractors and sent many executives scrambling for solutions, Brandt chose to stick with the strategies that have kept the firm on a steady upward path in recent years.The firm continued to pursue a broad mix of work, including a healthy dose of large projects with repeat customers. Although highly competitive bidding squeezed profit margins, Moore says Brandt continued to
After suffering a dismal decline in July, Florida experienced a welcome upturn in the pace of new construction contracts in August, according to McGraw-Hill Construction, publisher of Engineering News-Record. Compared to the same period of a year ago, the state saw a 25% improvement in the volume of new contracts during the month, for an overall total of roughly $2 billion. By percentage basis, the nonbuilding sector, which includes infrastructure contracts, saw the biggest gain, 58%, to tally $531.2 million for August. The residential sector contributed $886 million to the monthly total, for a 13% gain. The nonresidential sector experienced
According to McGraw-Hill Construction, publisher of Engineering News-Record, the pace of new Georgia construction contracts accelerated in August, with the state experiencing an 18% gain in new work. The gain resulted in an estimated $874.8 million in new contracts during the month. The biggest gains came in the nonresidential category, which saw a 52% improvement for an August total of $426.9 million. Residential work also improved, with contracts totaling $313.8 million for the month, a 9% increase. The nonbuilding category, which includes infrastructure work, declined by 22%, however, delivering an estimated $134.2 million in new contracts.On a year-to-date basis, McGraw-Hill
The value of North Carolina construction contracts signed in August totaled more than $1.1 billion, an increase of 11% compared to a year ago, according to McGraw-Hill Construction. The nonbuilding and nonresidential sectors led the way in August. Nonbuilding, which includes infrastructure work, totaled $182.4 million for the month, an increase of 59% compared to the same period of a year ago. Nonresidential contracts totaled $474.1 million, an uptick of 35%. The volume of residential contracts declined, however, by 14%, to tally $469.4 million.On a year-to-date basis, North Carolina’s 2011 construction contracts total $9.9 billion through August. That represents a
The overall value of new South Carolina construction contracts totaled $650.1 million in August, a 46% jump over the same period of a year ago, according to McGraw-Hill Construction, publisher of Engineering News-Record. The nonbuilding sector, which includes infrastructure work, more than doubled compared to the same period of a year ago. The category recorded an estimated $204.2 million in new contracts in August, well ahead of the $80.7-million total from a year ago. Residential work also picked up the pace, with the $325.9 million in August contracts representing a 42% gain over last year. Nonresidential contracts fell by 11%,
The overall value of new Florida construction contracts fell precipitiously in July, for a monthly total of less than $1.6 billion, according to McGraw-Hill Construction, publisher of Engineering News-Record. The monthly total was a 60% decline from the same period of a year ago. Related Links: Residential Sector Boosts Georgia Contract Activity in July North Carolina Contracts Jump 58% in July South Carolina Contracts Decline 13% in July The biggest dropoff was in the nonbuilding sector, which includes infrastructure contracts. Its July total of $442.2 million was 83% lower than the nearly $2.6 billion recorded last July. The nonresidential category
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