Most of New England's construction and demolition (C&D) waste is landfill-bound, and that's a problem for states as well as contractors. Given the limited amount of landfill space and general public opposition to new landfill development, some states have taken matters into their own hands by banning landfill disposal and incineration and/or imposing other restrictions on C&D debris. Related Links: ENR New York More ENR New York Project Stories The issue is a headache for many of the region's contractors, who ultimately pay to have their waste hauled to out-of-state landfills. But the owners of a new C&D waste-fueled energy
In the renewable energy world, the 115-kilowatt solar array under construction on the roof of Bedminster, N.J.'s Public Works building is nothing special. But when viewed with 37 other mostly small-scale installations across northern Somerset County that have pooled resources to afford solar installations, Bedminster is part of a veritable 7-megawatt powerhouse. Related Links: ENR New York Each individual installation contributes to that powerhouse under a roughly $35-million county initiative to install rooftop, ground mount or canopy solar panels on government buildings and schools that are structurally sound enough to support them. Morris County devised the aggregated-site solar program, backed
As the economy began a slow recovery last year, design firms held on for a long ride. Construction budgets and jobs were still being slashed and projects delayed, although not to the same degree as in 2010. While the ride ahead appears to be a lot less bumpy, design professionals say they are hanging on and are preparing for a long gradual recovery until activity returns to pre-recession levels. Related Links: Public Projects Helped Firms Stay Stable In 2010 "The positive thing about 2011 was stability as compared with 2010, but, even so, there was no major growth," says Ira
New York state and city officials have big plans brewing, including sprawling developments like the $2-billion planned applied science campus on Roosevelt Island, controversial proposals like a new $4-billion convention center in Queens, and billion-dollar infrastructure upgrades like those planned for the George Washington Bridge. But industry watchers say that while such complex multi-year projects bode well for the A/E/C industry, there are likely to be speed bumps along the way. Photo Courtesy of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey In suspense: Work on the planned $1B-$1.2B George Washington Bridge includes the replacement of suspension cables and
Manhattan contractors are used to building in small spaces. But when an owner-developer joint venture team offered to custom-design a 24-story tower for Pace University housing at 180 Broadway, the idea of "small spaces" took on a new dimension. The $60-million project is in a particularly congested part of the city—and within two blocks of five other major construction jobs, including the World Trade Center redevelopment and the Fulton Street Transit Center, which is across the street.The 156,000-sq-ft structure on the 7,000-sq-ft site is also across the street from the historic Corbin Building, which is undergoing construction at 192
As Hurricane Irene rumbled toward the Northeast last August, crews at the Canoe Brook Water Treatment Plant in Millburn, N.J., scrambled to defend two potential casualties—the existing 90-year-old treatment plant and the construction site of its 47,000-sq-ft replacement. The crews knew that in the aftermath of major storms like Irene, which turned out to be one of worst in New Jersey's recent history, the potential for damage was high. The old facility near the banks of Canoe Brook, by its confluence with the Passaic River, wound up taking a direct hit. Waterways crested well above flood stage and swamped the
The 20 young A/E/C industry professionals honored in ENR New York's Top 20 Under 40 competition have gone beyond the norm of excellence in their careers, showing leadership skills in their profession as well as a commitment to give back to their communities.
A distinctive feature of the new $825-million Barclays Center in Brooklyn is its "pre-weathered" facade of rusted steel panels that give the 675,000-sq-ft arena a been-there-all-along air. The unusual curtain wall of the structure, set to open this fall as the home for the National Basketball Association's Nets, has called for pioneering fabrication techniques on a project that has sometimes progressed by trial and error. The toughened exterior is also a fitting motif for a development that has endured and been shaped by a host of setbacks that included delays, budget cuts, design changes, legal battles and project team overhauls—not
When Gale Grady, district manager at PCL Civil Constructors, discusses Florida's Dept. of Transportation's information technology system, it sounds a lot like sailing: To take advantage of a beautiful day, or an interesting contract up for bid, a contractor connects to an online program that allows digital submissions, or even multiple resubmissions if modifications are necessary, before bids close. Like a sailboat catching a good wind, the e-bid system propels the contractor through a streamlined process fairly quickly and pretty smoothly. "This is far and above what manual submissions are like," says Grady, whose Tampa, Fla.-based firm has teamed up
Like a well-worn roadway, old hospitals and technology may get the job done, but they are not ideal—especially for an aging population increasingly reliant on state-of-the-art treatment facilities. While the country is full of infrastructure in need of an upgrade, at least one state—Connecticut—is poised to bring its hospital and health-care sector into the 21st century with advanced medicine and facilities to match. Analysts say that with more than $1 billion of expansions and new building planned during the next six years, the state's hospital and health-care sector may be well-positioned to throw a lifeline to the ailing construction industry.
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