Meatballs, deer and insects may sound like lunch gone awry, but they may also bring to mind the logos of some well-known construction equipment suppliers. For years, images of the red-hot Manitowoc meatball, the leaping John Deere and the determined Caterpillar have turned up on countless hard hats and purchase orders, burrowing into the minds of engineers, estimators and superintendents. "Suppliers have to convince me they will be around tomorrow." — Thad Pirtle, VP of equipment management, Traylor Bros. Inc., Evansville, Ind. "Manufacturers are getting close on quality." — J. Pat Monnot, VP of Global Operations, AMECO, Greenville, S.C. (Photo
The fiber-optic revolution is at the door. Two decades of cable-running have laid the bones of a national high-speed data network. Now, an explosive drive is under way to bring the long-awaited, last-mile fiber connections to millions of businesses and homes. Capacity Bottlenecks in the national network of optical-fiber are falling away. (Photo courtesy of Corning Optical Fiber) Analysts with network consulting engineers Telcordia Technologies Inc., Piscataway, N.J., expect the build-out to connect at least 33 million homes and cost $45 billion to $50 billion over the next 10 to 15 years. Already the campaign has spawned its own lingo.
In the five years since its launch, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design has become widely accepted as the standard of ‘greenness’ for buildings. This acceptance has come despite complaints from users that the rating system, known as LEED, it is not always an accurate indication of sustainability. Its popularity continues to grow even though little is known about how buildings certified under the still young system perform over the long run. Click here to view chart Some sources say the resulting product is superior. "It is a systematic approach to better buildings–not just ‘green’ buildings," says Pamela Lippe, principal
MODEL Officials are skeptical about the validity of fire models used in performance design.(Graphic courtesy of ARUP) "Given the serious concerns we have regarding a structure of this height not having a dual lateral force-resisting system, we recommend against the designers proceeding with their proposed [performance-based] design. Instead, we suggest the designers follow code-prescribed methods." That warning message in a May 5, 2004, letter from a San Diego building official to structural engineer Magnusson Klemencic Associates (MKA) was clear but all too familiar: Stop, turn around and follow the beaten path. When it comes to official approvals for a nontraditional
Double Duty. Versatile track option takes the place of wheels on existing skid-steer loaders. (Photo courtesy of Loegering Manufacturing Inc.) If construction equipment sales serve as an indicator of the overall health of the industry, then 2005 will be a softer, more-predictable version of 2004. Across the board, manufacturers, dealers, rental outlets and auctioneers are enjoying higher prices, robust demand and thicker backlogs. Their product lines are diversifying and innovation has come back with a vengeance. Construction fleet owners needing to bulk up on rolling stock and tools have more options than ever before. Some logistical challenges are dampening the
Threat reduction. Homeland security, now federally reorganized, will see spending boost. The famous government poster with Uncle Sam saying, "I Want YOU for U.S. Army," has defined military recruiting back to World War I and may have new meaning 87 years later. New and changing missions in the U.S. Defense Dept. and other key sectors of the federal government are pushing Uncle Sam and the engineering and construction community closer together. The Bush administration’s plan for a more "outsourced" government and its tougher security priorities are generating new mutual interest. In turn, firms are revving up stakes in the federal
One year after the major deployment of U.S. engineers and contractors to help rebuild Iraq, the country’s physical landscape has begun to reflect their involvement and the billions of American dollars committed. But the unanticipated level of violence, rising costs, slowed pace of big projects and political influence have many firms taking stock of their role in Iraq over the past 12 months or more, and wondering what the future holds. Hope that the unexpectedly successful Iraqi elections on Jan. 30 might signal a change in the insurgent terrorism that has dogged reconstruction was dampened by a rocket attack the
< New Look. V-shaped concrete piers mimic upstream Memorial Bridge’s arches. After more than four years of construction, the $2.4-billion plan to build a new Woodrow Wilson Bridge across the Potomac River and expand adjacent segments of the Capital Beltway has reached the one-third-complete mark. The scorecard so far? Neil Pedersen, head of the Maryland State Highway Administration, which oversees the lion’s share of the contracts, says: "We are on schedule. We are slightly under our budget. For a megaproject these days, that is quite an accomplishment." After the huge cost run-up on Boston’s "Big Dig," any $1-billion-plus transportation megaproject
Solid Hope. Coal-fired powerplants look more attractive. (Photo courtesy of Bechtel CORP.) Coal-fired power is back in vogue. Liquefied-natural-gas terminals are being proposed and even built again. Petroleum commands a price never before seen. If it weren’t for the construction boom in the Canadian oil sands, one observer might think he was in a time warp that has dropped him back in the 1970s. In a broad sense, the wheel has fully turned. Natural-gas prices made a step-increase four years ago, pushing gas over the threshold of about $3 per million Btu at which LNG can compete with native natural
Concrete is giving up its secrets. Prodded by engineers and contractors frustrated with having to imagine, rather than measure, the changing forces inside sullen masses of hardening mix, scientists and technologists are working to perfect sensors that finally allow a look inside. Sensor technology is riding high on a decade of heady advances in electronics, computers and communications. As sure as concrete, sensors embedded into highways, bridges and buildings are rising stars of construction. It’s no longer just researchers using sensors to study concrete and measure changes in integrated structures that can affect the material. Contractors and engineers are also
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