The Department of Buildings, New York City Service, Con Edison and the City University of New York have launched the NYC Cool Roofs Program, a citywide program to help reduce cooling costs, energy usage and greenhouse gas emissions by applying reflective, white coating to rooftops. The program is a partnership between public and private organizations, non-profit groups and building owners and is a component of Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s PlaNYC initiative, the city’s comprehensive sustainability plan reduce greenhouse gas emissions 30 percent by 2030. NYC Cool Roofs is designed to cool one million sq ft of rooftop. In 2009, Mayor Bloomberg
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is looking to the private sector to finance the construction of a replacement for the Goethals Bridge, which connects Staten Island to New Jersey. The estimated $1 billion project would be paid for, according to PANYNJ Executive Director Chris Ward, by a private investor or group which would then lease the bridge to the Port Authority. “If the market can’t provide us with a low cost option, then the market will have shown that it can’t respond, right now, to this kind of arrangement,” Ward said. “But we think there is
Turner Construction Company, in partnership with the York College School of Business and the Small Business Development Center has developed the first undergraduate accredited construction management program called the Construction Management Academy based on the company’s original training program curriculum. The Construction Management Academy will be lead by Turner staff and York college professors and will be available to students enrolled at York College or individuals currently working in the building industry. Course offerings will begin on June 1 at the York College School of Business in Queens, New York. The curriculum includes courses on estimating, building information modeling (BIM),
German Contractor HOCHTIEF has acquired New York-based construction firm E.E. Cruz and Company through its wholly-owned subsidiaries, Turner Construction of New York and Flatiron Construction Corp. of Colorado. “These three companies will form one of the most powerful players in the competition for forthcoming investments,” said Dr. Herbert Lütkestratkötter, CEO of HOCHTIEF. Established in 1984, E.E. Cruz specializes in civil construction projects in the New York metropolitan region and has completed numerous infrastructure projects including building and modernizing highways, bridges, tunnels, railroad infrastructure, pipelines, water supply and treatment systems and foundation work. With almost 250 employees, its annual contract revenue
MKDA Celebrates 50th Anniversary May 01, 2010 East Rutherford, New Jersey-based Mc Gowan Builders, Inc. donated $15,000 to St. Joseph’s Children Hospital at a ceremony that took place at the hospital’s main campus in Paterson, New Jersey. Seated from left: Patrick Mc Gowan’s daughters Niamh, Emma, and Sarah Mc Gowan. Standing from left: Chris Coyne, Director of Major Gifts, St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center Foundation; Timothy P. Barr, Vice President for Development, St. Joseph’s Healthcare System, and Executive Director, St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center Foundation; Patrick J. Mc Gowan, President of Mc Gowan Builders; Martin C. Mc Gowan, Vice President of
Many firms in the design and construction industry are jumping in to “leverage” social media for their business without always understanding how exactly to go about it. Most firms associate social media with just connecting to potential clients or making others aware of their firm’s presence by posting information on their firm through different media channels. Others use the terms “social media” and “social networks” interchangeably, thinking they are one and the same. Too often, social media is strictly viewed as just a new tactic for communications. What is needed is a clear understanding of who, what, when, why and
The Glen Oaks Branch of the Queens Library is getting a facelift that will render the building almost unrecognizable. A modern $13-million glass structure is replacing the drab two-story brick building housing the library at the corner of Union Turnpike and 256th Street. Related Links: Playing Small Ball The old structure, now demolished, was too small and in a state of disrepair, according to Frank Connor, program director, the New York City Department of Design and Construction (DDC). The new three-level facility, slated for completion in June 2011, is twice the size of the old library and includes reading rooms
The Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G) of Newark, N.J., has embarked on a $515 million, 80-megawatt Solar 4 All program in its quest to obtain 30% of its energy supply from renewable sources by 2020. Related Links: Playing Small Ball “PSE&G has a pretty robust program in place,” says Dan Urban, business manager with J. Fletcher Creamer & Son of Hackensack, N.J., which received a $10.08 million contract last October to build a solar farm in Edison, N.J. PSE&G expects to start construction on this and three other solar farms in 2010, representing a $50 million investment in
Despite, or perhaps because of, the city’s density and relative proximity to a public park, walking is an almost extinct pastime in New York City. In certain enclaves, elderly immigrants do spend their evenings strolling in pairs with hands clasped behind their backs. Transplants from more scenic U.S. states escape the city altogether for some fresh air upstate. Some fortunates walk to work. But with a metropolitan obsession with fitness and competition, most of the city’s citizens enjoy parks in an uber-active manner, be it training for marathons in Central Park or cycling faster than the adjacent car traffic along