The State Energy Conservation Office awarded Boerne ISD a $164,000 Renewable Energy Technology Grant. The project is being installed at Fair Oaks Ranch Elementary School and will feature a 42.8-kW solar roof-mounted array consisting of 177 photovoltaic panels that will be oriented to the southeast for enhanced solar-energy generation. div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" The system is designed to generate 59,101 kWh per year, saving the school more than $5,700 a year in energy expenses, or about 8 % of its electricity bill. By producing renewable energy, the school should prevent 38 tons of CO2 from entering the air
Dallas-based Atrium Cos. plans to open a new Texas vinyl extrusion facility. Atrium leased a 120,000-sq-ft manufacturing facility in Greenville, 50 mi east of Dallas. div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" Operations should begin in December and will initially employ 20 with future expansion likely as demands increase according to market growth expectations.
The city of Houston will receive a $423,069 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency grant to advance greenhouse gas reduction activities as part of the agency’s Climate Showcase Communities initiative. div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" The city’s funding aims to reduce transportation-related emissions through development of electric vehicle and bicycle infrastructure. The proposal calls for the city to develop an electric vehicle charging infrastructure to be used by both city and commercial or residential vehicles, implement a bike-share program and improve the existing bike infrastructure by using solar-powered LED lighting on bike paths. The project has the potential to reduce greenhouse
Houston-based Fretz Construction Co. and architect David Morris broke ground on a new 3,000-sq-ft multipurpose space and extensive renovations at Holy Ghost Church in Houston, originally built in 1964. Unique program requirements regarding the design of the addition included using similarly laminated wood arches, matching textured brick and stucco. Photo: Lourdes Cuellar Holy Ghost groundbreaking. L to R: Win Haggard; Ronald Clary of Fretz; David Morris, architect; Greg May, pastor; Daniel Perez, Cindy Schultz, Marcial Orellana and Rodolfo Ramirez. div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras"
Dallas-based Barnhart Balfour Beatty will serve as construction manager-at-risk for a LEED-gold-targeted, $104-million apartment village to house more than 800 students at the University of California, Riverside. div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" The 350,000-sq-ft project will begin in June with completion set for July 2013. Sasaki Associates of San Francisco is the architect. Parent company Balfour Beatty Construction of Dallas, in partnership with Fort Lauderdale-based Cummings General Contractors, was awarded a $100-million contract to manage the Terminal 4 Gate Replacement at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. The construction is part of a $1-billion expansion program. Preconstruction for the project began
Baylor Medical Center at Garland’s emergency department expanded with an extensive renovation of its existing 20,300 sq ft and the addition of 4,300 sq ft to accommodate three radiology rooms, one trauma room with seven critical-care treatment rooms, a new triage unit and 18 treatment rooms. div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" Dallas-based t. howard + associates served as architect. THA’s design and project management team worked around columns hidden behind walls, outdated infrastructure and other design complications. Dallas-based MEDCO Construction was the contractor for the project.
Dallas-based Beck Technology Ltd. released the latest version of DProfiler, the company’s flagship macro building information modeling software. div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" With the DProfiler Site3D Module, users can introduce topography to their model that will allow rapid creation of site plans. The new module makes it possible to review construction cost, site cost and energy cost simultaneously in a single application. Also, The Beck Group added four names to its list of managing directors across national operations, including Matt Williamson as Central and South Texas managing director. With the addition of architectural services to its Austin operation,
One outcome of the deadly 2007, rush-hour collapse of the IH-35W bridge crossing the Mississippi River in Minneapolis has been a re-newed focus on bridge safety nationwide. Photo: Stan Williams/courtesy of TxDOT The Spur 98 Bridge spanning the Guadalupe River in Kerrville was completed in August 2006, extending the spur to FM 1338. div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" In Texas, the state departments of transportation and public safety work together to ensure that the state’s bridges are safe, Mark Cross, TxDOT spokesman, tells Texas Construction. TxDOT oversees more than 50,000 bridges, including those maintained by state or other governmental
The city of Austin recently named Lucia Athens to the newly created position as its chief sustainability officer. Austin city leaders saw a need to pull together the many green initiatives across the city. Athens, a UT graduate with a master�s in architecture, returned to Texas from Seattle after working for ten years leading Seattle�s green-building initiative. She arrived in mid-September, and Texas Construction wanted to sit down and welcome her to her new position. We also wanted to get a feel for what she will contribute to the A/C/E environment and the impact her position will have on the
Touting his Pickens Plan, Dallas oilman and philanthropist T. Boone Pickens said in a keynote address on October 14 in Grapevine, Texas, that he is courting the 60 United States senators he needs in order to pass his energy plan in a vote scheduled for November 17. Photo: Tonie Auer With more than $80 million from his own wallet, Pickens is promoting America’s energy independence. The 82-year-old Texas oil tycoon told attendees at the 2010 Sunbelt Builders Show held at the Gaylord Texan that this is his mission in life. Pickens says out of the 85 million barrels of oil
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