Photo by David Sailors NJDOT decided to shut down northbound lanes completely so the contractor can go in and replace the 3.5-mile deck within two years as part of a 10-year, $1-billion rehabilitation program. Related Links: Rival Bidder on New Jersey Highway Rehab Eyes Winner's China Tie | N.J. Gov. Christie Details Decision on ARC Tunnel Project Contractor crews bolted from the starting gate in mid-April, commencing a two-year marathon effort to replace three miles' worth of the Pulaski Skyway northbound deck. About a month after the lanes were completely closed, on April 12, project officials say "Autogeddon" has been
Related Links: SEI/CASE BIM Survey SEAoNY Structural engineers are using building information modeling in greater numbers, according to a recent survey. Yet few firms report that they are sharing BIMs with contractors.Two-thirds of the responding structural engineers surveyed last year say they are using BIM, compared with one-third in 2008. The fifth annual BIM survey, conducted by the BIM committee of the Structural Engineering Institute (SEI) and the Council of American Structural Engineers (CASE), with the Structural Engineers Association of Texas, went to more than 20,000 structural firms. The response rate was about 5%."The majority of the respondents are not
Map courtesy Fla. Dept. of Transportation In addition to the rebuilding of general-use lanes, the 21-mile-long project includes reconstruction of 15 major interchanges, construction of roughly 140 bridges and the addition of four variable-priced toll lanes. Related Links: FDOT Officially Names Short-Listed Groups for I-4 Ultimate Job Interstate 595 Widening Mark's Florida's First P3 Effort A concessionaire headed by Skanska Infrastructure Development will lead the Florida Dept. of Transportation's largest public-private partnership project to date: the $2.3-billion rebuild of Orlando's Interstate 4.A joint venture of Skanska USA Civil Southeast, Granite Construction and Lane Construction will lead construction. HDR Engineering and
Related Links: Israel Rail Job Work Resumes After TBM Deviation is Found Booming Ridership Prompts Push for More Light Rail in Jerusalem As part of a plan to expand its 1,100-kilometer national rail network by 600 km in the next few years, Israel awarded last month its largest-ever railroad-track contract, a $400-million award, to a consortium of Germany's DB Bahnbau Gruppe and Israeli contractors Shikun U'Binui Ltd. and Lesico Ltd.The team beat out a consortium of France's TSO, Spain's Indra and Israel's T.A.N. Earthmoving Ltd.The work involves three separate new lines: the 22-km double-track line from Acre to Carmiel; the
Related Links: Apple Apparently Moving Away From the Grid To Power Its Data Center in North Carolina Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer signs bill to provide manufacturers with power tax cut After converting an abandoned manufacturing plant originally built for solar-panel manufacturer First Solar Inc., Apple Inc. has started shipping sapphire glass from its new production site in Mesa, Ariz. The facility's revival and ongoing construction continue after months of political maneuvering, the price collapse of solar panels and the subsequent fire sale to save the multimillion-dollar development.Apple is unwilling to disclose much about the plant's output, but technology blogs and
Related Links: LEED Green Building System Shows Strong Growth http://enr.construction.com/business_management/project_delivery/2013/1021-Early-Involvement-Improves-Contractor-Understanding-of-Green-Priorities.aspEarly Involvement Improves Contractor Understanding of Green Priorities Reducing energy use in buildings has long been the target of green contractors and owners alike. The U.S. Dept. of Energy reports that buildings account for 40% of U.S. energy consumption and building owners spend $40 billion annually on energy. Despite this expenditure, building occupants are often uncomfortable in their work spaces.Now a study by McGraw Hill Construction (MHC) suggests that high-performance building system technologies already on the market can offer substantial savings in energy use over traditional systems. Working in partnership with
Photo Courtesy of HNTB New Interbelt Bridge in Ohio replaces a structurally deficient predecessor; other projects like these could be put on hold if federal transportation funding legislation isn't addressed by Oct. 1. + Image ENR Art Dept. Related Links: Obama Rolls Out $302-Billion Transportation Proposal Don't Wave The White Flag On Federal Transportation Funding As the Highway Trust Fund balance shrinks and the current surface transportation law's Sept. 30 expiration date looms, the Obama administration has fleshed out the details of its $302-billion plan to save the trust fund from insolvency and boost highway and transit spending over the
Related Links: Pipeline Bursts Heat Up Safety Questions Over Keystone XL Engineer Blows Whistle on Canada Pipeline Inspections Canada's National Energy Board released its final audit report on Trans- Canada's pipeline management system on April 24. NEB found the company to be in non-compliance with risk-assessment and hazard-identification regulations, monitoring and maintenance protocols, internal audits, inspections and management review.The setback to TransCanada's effort to secure approval to build a major new pipeline segment came less than a week after the U.S. State Dept. delayed, until after the November elections, its decision on construction permitting for the last leg of the
Photo by Nadine M. Post/ENR New York City's Brooklyn Bridge Park was designed using the principles of the waterfront development guidelines. Related Links: WEDG New York City Comprehensive Waterfront Plan New York City Special Initiative for Rebuilding and Resiliency Developers and designers in the New York-New Jersey region will soon have a new tool to help create more storm- and flood-resilient buildings and parks along the water. The voluntary Waterfront Edge Guidelines rating system, called WEDG and fashioned after the LEED green-building rating system, could become a model for other coastal and riverfront areas, says it developer.The checklist-based WEDG is
Photo Courtesy Suffolk Construction On April 26, general contractor Suffolk Construction managed the largest continuous concrete mat placement in the city of Boston's history at the downtown Millennium Tower development.Hudson, Mass.-based subcontractor S&F Concrete marshalled 600 concrete trucks to cast 6,000 cu yd of concrete for the foundation of the $700-million building. The continuous cast lasted 36 hours, starting at 4:00 a.m. The foundation's 8-ksi-concrete mat averages 6½ ft in depth.It cost $6 million to put in place, including both the concrete and reinforcing bar. The mat will support a 625-ft-tall building with 1.4 million sq ft of space.
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