Intraparty politics are threatening infrastructure in Illinois, where state legislators remain deadlocked over a mammoth capital bill to fund road, transit, school and other projects.
As three new U.S. runways officially opened Nov. 20, the Federal Aviation Administration bill that would fund airport improvement grants, which would include a more streamlined process for future runway projects, still awaits reauthorization. The runways, opening at Washington Dulles, Chicago O’Hare and Seattle-Tacoma airports, will allow for 300,000 more flights nationwide annually, says FAA Acting Administrator Robert Sturgell. Nevertheless, a May 2007 FAA report identifies 14 airports that will soon face capacity constraints unless more new runways or new airports are built. FAA’s efforts to streamline the project-approval process have been hurt by the wait for reauthorization, says Sturgell.
For some, it is millions of dollars’ worth of deferred paving work. For others, it is billion-dollar highway expansions. Nationwide, state transportation departments are putting projects on hold due to shrinking budgets. Dwindling tax revenue from gas and other sources, a bleak economic environment and continued high materials costs are all taking their toll. An anticipated infrastucture-heavy stimulus package from the new Obama administration cannot come soon enough for industry officials. Photo: Brad Fullmer In Suspension. Planned major Utah highway projects are stalled for the time being. “In my 30 years in the industry, I’ve never seen anything like this,”
San Francisco’s $4.4-billion Hetch Hetchy Water System Improvement Project has passed a major milestone with the approval of its program environmental impact report. The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission began planning for the program, consisting of 85 projects, in 2002 to improve the system’s ability to operate in the aftermath of a major earthquake. The program is funded by a bond issue approved by voters in 2002. Construction of many smaller projects has proceeded while the report was being completed on 17 larger sections valued at $1.8 billion. Construction on many major projects will begin in the next six to
The speaker repeated it twice for effect: “Nothing humans can do in mitigation between now and 2100 will affect the level of sea-level rise between now and 2100.” The rise will be substantial, possibly close to one meter, said Michael K. Orbach, professor of marine affairs and policy at Duke University Marine Laboratory, Beaufort, N.C. “We cannot stop it. All we can do in the next century is adapt to it,” he added. Slide Show With much of the Gulf Coast at low elevations, forecasts of rising sea levels show flooded infrastructure. With much of the Gulf Coast at low
The new Green Building Certification Institutes, sister organization to Washington, D.C.-based U.S. Green Building Council, is about to launch a total overhaul of the exam system for professionals seeking accreditation to design and build green buildings according to USGBC’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design rating system, known as LEED. The overhaul, announced at USGBC’s Greenbuild International Conference and Expo, Nov. 19-21 in Boston, creates a tiered-credential and specific tests for different types of buildings. GBCI, formed last month, will take over credentialing and building certification from USGBC in January. Peter Templeton, USGBC’s former vice president of education and research,
The release of the revised report on the original Seven World Trade Center in New York City marks the end of the $16-million investigation into the World Trade Center. The investigation was triggered by the destruction of the complex on Sept. 11, 2001, by terrorists. Based on feedback, Gaithersburg, Md.-based National Institute of Standards and Technology made several changes to the draft final report on the 47-story steel-framed tower, which collapsed on Sept. 11 after burning unattended for some seven hours. The report was released for public comment on Aug. 21. The revisions did not alter the investigation team’s major
Will Ikerd maintains it will take less than 10 years for building information modeling to transform structural engineering. He’s helping that happen as co-chair of the BIM committee, formed last year, of the Structural Engineering Institute (SEI) and the Council of American Structural Related Links: Building Team Views Technological Tools as Best Chance For Change Virtual Collaborative Charrettes Give Glimpse of Future Forum Tackles Teamwork Issues Strong Owner Leadership Can Optimize Project Collaboration Building Information Modeling Snags Don’t Dampen Spirits Lawyers Struggle with Contract Terms Survey of Structural Engineers Says One-Third Are Using BIM Constructors Grapple With Resistance to Change
The Associated General Contractors BIM Forum is a wild success, attracting 1,600members in less than three years fromall areas of building design and construction.There is no cost to join, but that’s not whymembership is increasing daily, at a rate of30% each year. The forum is so popular becauseit is considered the best place for collaborationand collective action to relieve theaches and achieve the potential gains of theparadigm shift to building-information-modeling-enabled design and construction. Related Links: Building Team Views Technological Tools as Best Chance For Change Virtual Collaborative Charrettes Give Glimpse of Future Forum Tackles Teamwork Issues Strong Owner Leadership Can
First comes “lonely” BIM, when a firm begins to tool up for building-information-modeling-enabled projects. Then comes “social” BIM, when a firm collaborates with other firms using BIM. Next comes “intimate” BIM, when the owner, architect and contractor share risk and reward contractually via BIM-enabled integrated project delivery. Finally, when work gets heavenly, there is “cheruBIM.” Slide Show Photo: Onuma, Inc. Related Links: Building Team Views Technological Tools as Best Chance For Change Virtual Collaborative Charrettes Give Glimpse of Future Forum Tackles Teamwork Issues Strong Owner Leadership Can Optimize Project Collaboration Building Information Modeling Snags Don’t Dampen Spirits Lawyers Struggle with
RSS
