It took more than 25 years of litigation before the state of New Jersey agreed to equalize public schools in rich and poor communities. Two years after a single state-run school construction agency was formed and funded to the tune of $8.6 billion, new facilities gleam in the state’s oldest and densest neighborhoods. But the story is far from over as the New Jersey Schools Construction Corp. copes with unforeseen costs and political uncertainty over dwindling funds for hundreds of facilities yet to be upgraded. Spencer Many observers credit SCC’s new CEO, John F. Spencer, a former engineering executive with
As owners cope with capital budgets hit by cost-cutting and consolidation, the halcyon days of open-ended construction contracts are fast drawing to a close. "There are very few owners who say ‘we don’t care what it costs, just get our product to market,’" says Les Sturgeon, divisional vice president of global facilities engineering for Abbott Laboratories. "There are no more blank checks. Every owner is looking for optimization of their capital dollars." This pressure to control costs is rampant in the owner community. "As the utility industry moves more into the competitive markets, costs are becoming a greater issue than
During surgery recently in a Northeast hospital, the waterlogged ceiling of the operating room came tumbling down, complete with a bucket full of dirty water from a leaky roof. Miraculously, the patient did not die. But every year, nearly 90,000 others in the U.S. alone are not so lucky. They succumb to infections they pick up in the hospital. The numbers are shocking. More people die each year in hospital accidents than in car accidents. According to the Centers for Disease Control, a patient has nearly a one in 20 chance of picking up a so-called nosocomial infection in a
Intensifying urbanization in developing countries and worsening congestion in developed ones are driving demand for extensions and upgrades to metro systems. Financing remains a key constraint to new construction, but this is spurring innovative program management techniques. The metro market "is not huge," says Ed Pleuva, a director of U.K.-based design firm FaberMaunsell Ltd. But growing demand is reflected by a 3% annual rise in train car sales, says Dominique Pouliquen, senior vice president of product and strategy at Paris-based Alstom Transport S.A. Alstom has 12 projects under construction globally. About half consist of new or extended lines, says Pouliquen.
Cut and Cover. Most of the initial route was built using the method favored by Parsons. Late 19th century commuters in New York City relied on horsepower, steam engines and ferries. Horse-drawn streetcars averaged 6 mph, killed a pedestrian a week and left large quantities of manure. Four elevated rail lines offered somewhat faster service. But the noise, soot, cinders and blasts of steam from locomotives made them difficult neighbors. The city desperately needed a better way of moving large numbers of people around quickly. Until 1883, the big money in New York flowed to the elevated rail lines because
Progress. Existing station renovation and improvements lie at heart of capital program. (Photo courtesy of MTA New York City Transit) The world’s most comprehensive subway system, New York City’s 722 miles of track and 468 stations, has made it through 100 years. Operating 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and carrying five million daily riders, the transit net has survived largely due to rehabilitation efforts of engineers. Now, New York City Transit Authority officials hope to build extensions that will define the idea of subways for the next 100 years–quieter, greener, safer, more reliable and efficient. In the
...worldwide, says Sudhir Jambhekar, principal with local architects Fox and Fowle. The firm is part of the local preliminary engineering team led by DMJM+Harris and Arup. Upkeep. While new plans thrive (above) chief engineer Crawford (below left) must maintain current subway.(Photos courtesy of MTA New York City Transit) Advanced tunneling techniques would allow construction of the Second Avenue Subway to be less disruptive than the cut-and-cover methods that created the existing lines, says Kenneth Griffin, the team’s chief architect for station concepts and author of a book that examines subway design trends. The team will complete preliminary engineering for a
Being a specialty contractor is tough work in any circumstances. But the past two years have been especially tough as markets slumped in many sectors. Even where some have begun to recover, new business obstacles emerge. As a result, the current climate for many contractors is uncertain and that uncertainty is taking its toll. For ENR’s Top 600 Specialty Contractors, 2003 represented a third straight down year. Collectively, the Top 600 generated revenue of $46.87 billion, a 3.1% drop from 2002’s mark of $48.39 billion and a 13.6% fall-off from 2000, when listed firm revenue hit nearly $54 billion. Click
(Illustration by Guy Lawrence for ENR) Web-based project collaboration software has come of age. Although many first-generation products vanished with the dot-com bust, a core of vendors and users continued to refine the tools, experiment and learn how to best use them. They have learned a lot and barriers to adoption now are really starting to fall as greater availability to broadband Internet access lets people work easily with databases through Web browsers from anywhere. “The train of Web-based planning and control is starting to leave the station,” says Saied Kartam, Denver, Colo.-based CH2M Hill’s southwest manager for project controls
Long Island Sound’s small size, peculiar hydrology and proximity to New York City and growing urban and suburban centers in Connecticut and Long Island have long combined to pressure the quality of its water. Like elsewhere in the U.S., it rebounded quickly in the years following the implementation of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act of 1972. But increasing nitrogen levels traced to effluent discharged from the region’s wastewater treatment plants slowly began choking the air and life from the 1,320-sq-mile water body. While Connecticut began targeting nitrate removal in 1998, New York City balked over a crippling $11-billion compliance
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