May 31, 2021

Workers with Kiewit Infrastructure Group race to stabilize a fractured tie girder that forced an indefinite closure of the key Tennessee-Arkansas crossing.

Federal Buildings

House Passes $1.9B Bill to Upgrade U.S. Capitol Security

Measure responds to breaches and damage from Jan. 6 Capitol riot

Tom Ichniowski

May 20, 2021

UPDATE: House-approved bill would fund improved windows, doors and new vestibules to screen visitors after breaches, assaults and damage.

UPDATED: Houston, Harris County Skipped in $1B Round of Federal Harvey Relief Funds

Autumn Cafiero Giusti

May 27, 2021

Officials are challenging state process in hurricane relief awards after neither local government made the cut, although both contend they bore the brunt of the 2017 storm. Amid the backlash, the Texas General Land Office is now requesting $750 million in direct federal aid for Harris County.

Clean Energy Development

First Large-Scale US Offshore Wind Project OK'ed For Construction

Mary B. Powers

May 12, 2021

$2.8B, 800MW Vineyard Wind, off Massachusetts, wins U.S. approval to be built under a PLA, as next 800MW state project moves ahead and new ocean real estate is auctioned to add more capacity.

Cause Still Unclear in March Retaining Wall Collapse on $900M NJ Interchange

Stephanie Loder

May 18, 2021

One Comment

Forensic investigations of the incident continue, with project cost and schedule impact details also not yet revealed.

Work to Restart on Brazilian Tunneling Job After 5-Year Hiatus

Peter Reina

May 17, 2021

São Paulo metro work constitutes region's largest P3 contract.

COVID-19 and Construction

OSHA Now Says Contractors, Other Employers Should Not Record Vaccine Reactions

May 24, 2021

Agency has reversed course on a recommendation about recording as safety incidents adverse reactions to required COVID-19 vaccinations.

Federal Contracting

Biden Restores Obama-Era Local-Hire Pilot Program on FHWA, FTA Projects

Tom Ichniowski

May 19, 2021

Organized labor praises DOT action, but AGC criticizes it.

Risk Management

Prices Rise Sharply as Clouds Darken Construction Insurance Market for Buyers

Richard Korman

May 12, 2021

Brokers report increases in major coverage types, with highest in excess and umbrellas.

Legal

Major Calif. Contractor Pays $725K In EEOC Jobsite Racial Bias Pact

Erica Berardi

May 13, 2021

Hathaway Dinwiddie denies lawsuit claims of "hostile work environment" on completed $700M University of Southern California project but agreed to payment and anti-bias mitigation.

Litigation

US Supreme Court Punts on First City Climate Change Damages Suit

Mary B. Powers

May 19, 2021

Merits of Baltimore claim against oil and gas firms for infrastructure damage costs are skipped, as case is returned to lower court with changed guidelines; 25 other municipal and state suits now await new decisions.

Maryland Purple Line Chief Tapped as Vancouver Transit CEO

May 27, 2021

Kevin B. Quinn Jr. takes over 8,000-person TransLink, as predecessor Kevin Desmond jumps to U.S. consultant top role

Tech Investment

Procore IPO Exceeds $8.5B Valuation in First Day of Trading

Construction management software maker beats expectations, sets high bar for industry start-ups

May 20, 2021

Cloud-based construction management software firm sold 9.47 million shares at $67 each in stock offering May 20 on New York Stock Exchange.

Nvidia and Bentley Partner on Digital Twin Modeling and Simulation Environment

Nvidia Omniverse will power simulation and visualization in Bentley's iTwin environment

May 21, 2021

Software firm announces link for photo-realistic visualization and simulation in its iTwin digital twin environment at technology conference in April.

Triax Adds Features to Proximity Tracing Wearables, Looks Beyond Social Distancing

Jeff Rubenstone

May 26, 2021

Safety tracking tag also has geofencing and hazard warning features, as well as those that can be used for access control at gates and tracking worker equipment certifications

Biden Administration Aims to Curb Carbon in Public, Private Buildings

Bruce Buckley

May 18, 2021

EPA and DOE unveil programs to push building decarbonization, including the federal government's first-ever building performance standards and $30 million for specialized worker training

Congress Could Act by June to Reinstate Methane Emissions Controls

Mary B. Powers

May 16, 2021

House will soon start markup of congressional repeal of Trump-era end to oil-gas sector controls that Senate approved April 28, as more firms make emissions cuts and face investor pressure to do so.

Maryland Scales Back Big P3 Highway Expansion

Jim Parsons

May 14, 2021

$11B added lanes program will now focus on key Potomac River crossing rebuild and fewer toll lane miles. "Our intention is moving forward,” said proponent Gov. Larry Hogan, who leaves office in 2023.

Renewable Power

Court-Halted $1B Canada-Maine Transmission Line Will Proceed

Scott Van Voorhis

May 20, 2021

New ruling clears Quebec-New England hydro power project, despite opposition; developers propose billions in new lines to route more clean energy to New York City.

Labor

Former Iron Workers' Union Agent Sentenced for Jobsite Attack

May 18, 2021

Former Indiana union local manager Thomas Williamson, 70, receives four years in federal prison for 2016 extortion attempt and beating of non-union contractor.

Fatality

OSHA Fines Three Companies $64,000 in Worker Crushing Death

Greg Aragon

Erica Berardi

May 24, 2021

Penta Building Group and two subs face unspecified safety violations after worker was killed Dec. 7 when a 3,000-lb gate fell on him at a California casino job site.

Pulse: Project News for the Week of May 31, 2021

May 28, 2021

Clayton Property Group, doing business as Oakwood Homes, is planning to build a 300-acre northward expansion of the Banning Lewis Ranch subdivision in Colorado Springs.

Industry Leads for the Week of May 31, 2021

May 27, 2021

Regenyx LLC is considering constructing a polystyrene reprocessing plant at the Americas Styrenics styrene production plant in St. James.

Editorial: How To Write a Better COVID-19 Standard

May 28, 2021

How OSHA can keep its forthcoming COVID-19 emergency temporary safety standard fair and reasonable

Construction Economics for May 31, 2021

May 27, 2021