Mayor Richard Daley recently announced the formation of a new O’Hare Express Blue Ribbon Committee to undertake a comprehensive study for express train service between O’Hare International Airport and downtown Chicago. div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" The O’Hare International Airport and Downtown Chicago Express rail service would complement existing public transportation options, provide potential for new jobs, investment and speedier access between airport and downtown. The new express rail service would provide a cost effective and efficient transportation option for O’Hare travelers and help mitigate congestion on the region’s roadway. The committee will study the feasibility of the new

The second phase of engineering to support the electrical systems for a 315,000-sq-ft data center facility on Chicago’s Near South Side has begun, developer JRM Technology LLC announced. div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" The design and construction team is now working with Commonwealth Edison to finalize engineering for the data center’s significant power needs, moving the project forward, says James R. McHugh, JRM Technology’s principal. The facility, to be located at 111 E. Cermak Road, will be the first structure in downtown Chicago designed and built specifically as a data center, McHugh says. To meet data storage energy demands,

Companies working on the $670-million Mississippi River Bridge in St. Louis have shattered geotechnical records with a 36,067-ton load test on one of the bridge’s drilled-shaft, concrete foundations. Photo Courtesy of MODOT The test consisted of drilling an 11.5-ft-dia shaft 43.5 ft under the riverbed, then cutting an 11-ft-dia socket more than 23 ft into the underlying limestone bedrock. div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" The test, performed in June, consisted of drilling an 11.5-ft-dia shaft 43.5 ft under the riverbed, then cutting an 11-ft-dia socket more than 23 ft into the underlying limestone bedrock. An Osterberg hydraulic load cell

The Robert A. Young building in St. Louis is the first construction site in the U.S. that has been designated 100 percent AWPT-trained. div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" AWPT (American Work Platform Training) is the North American subsidiary of IPAF that manages the training program in the North American market. AWPT-trained employees from access specialists Goedecke planned the 20-story building project. AWPT-trained installers erected the mast climbing work platforms. An AWPT-certified instructor, Bobby Reese from Mastclimbers LLC, trained 56 employees of Superior Waterproofing as the first MCWP operators to hold the PAL Card (Powered Access Licensed-Registration). The building was

The highway investments in the stimulus law have been a bright spot for a transportation construction industry hard hit by recession-induced cutbacks in state programs and decline in private sector work. div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" But continued uncertainty about passage of a multi-year surface transportation reauthorization bill is hindering chances for a sustained economic recovery. That was the thrust of the message delivered by Kevin Gannon, vice president of Appleton, Wis.-based Northeast Asphalt Inc., at a House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee hearing on implementation of the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act. Gannon, a director on the American Road

Clayco Inc. has been selected by Stinson Morrison Hecker LLP, a law firm with more than 300 attorneys, for tenant finish construction of its 10th and 11th floor offices in the new Centene headquarter building in Clayton, Mo. div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" The project includes a 47,000-sq-ft build-out in the recently constructed Centene building located at the corner of Hanley Road and Forsyth Avenue. Unique features of Stinson’s office include skyfold partitions, bamboo paneling and ceilings, three-form acrylic panels and fabric wrapped panels as part of pursing LEED Silver certification with the U.S. Green Building Council.

Chicago-based Cotter Consulting Inc. announced recently that it will celebrate its 20th year in business as a leading owner’s representative firm. Cotter Consulting operates its main office on South Wacker Drive in Chicago and opened a second office in Milwaukee on Sept 1. div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" Anne Edwards-Cotter opened the firm in 1990 after receiving a civil engineering degree from Bradley University and spending nine years at Chicago-based construction firms Schal Associates, LaSalle Partners and Walsh Higgins. Throughout its 20 years, Cotter has served the transportation, buildings, healthcare and aviation industries, successfully completing more than 500 projects.

Twenty-eight projects, comprising six bridges and 22 buildings throughout North America, were named winners in the 2010 PCI Design Awards competition sponsored by the Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute. div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" “These outstanding projects were singled out for extraordinary design, attention to detail, innovation, speed of construction, and industry advancement,” says Vijay Chandra, transportation jury member and senior vice president of Parsons Brinckerhoff. “The wide range of entries highlights the versatility of precast concrete systems and the innovative ways in which engineers are using the advantages of precast concrete to meet today’s design challenges.” Of the 28 winning

Mechanical contractor Haberberger Inc. of St. Louis was recently recognized by the Mechanical Contractors Association of Eastern Missouri for its outstanding HVAC mechanical installation work on two projects for the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis and Washington University’s Genome Sequencing Data Center. div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" Haberberger has been honored with the mechanical installation award 21 times for a variety of projects over the past several years. Haberberger received an award in the category of projects under $400,000 for its work at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. Under the leadership of foreman Ron Arbuthnot and

Haberberger Inc., a mechanical contracting company based in St. Louis, announced its team recently completed work on a wet-weather expansion project for the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District’s (MSD) Lemay Wastewater Treatment Plant in South St. Louis County. Photo Courtesy of Harberger Inc. Haberberger Inc. recently completed work on a wet-weather expansion project for the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District’s Lemay Wastewater Treatment Plant in South St. Louis County. div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" Haberberger was tapped by Tarlton Corp. to construct four primary clarifiers, a primary sludge pump station and a grit building. Led by General Superintendent Phil