Photo By Tudor Van Hampton for ENR The oil-and-gas sector has helped prop up demand for large equipment, such as truck cranes. Next year, sales are expected to rise slightly as rental companies and dealers continue to 'fleet up.' Related Links: Telematics Help Trim Contractor Fleet Costs Why Contractors are Renting Rather Than Buying Although analysts are expecting U.S. construction to rise next year, many believe contractors will continue to turn to rental and leasing companies rather than buy large quantities of new equipment for their projects."Most people think that the rental companies will continue adding to fleet this coming

Photo by Getty Images/Michael Heiman Workers secured a damaged tower crane in Manhattan six days after Hurricane Sandy blew in. Related Links: Post-Sandy Mobilization Shifts into High Gear Prices for Windstorm Coverage May Not Be Changed New York Ponders Plan For Next Storm Structural Damage Assessors Decide Whether Storm-Damaged Houses Can Be Entered NYC Crane Rescue Is Complete Dangling Crane Was Weather-Vaned, Contractor Says As workers finished tying down a mangled crane jib left dangling for days over Manhattan's West 57th Street in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, engineers involved in the incident moved to design a method for taking

AP WIDEWORLD Damaged tower crane remains dangling days after Hurricane Sandy struck the region. Related Links: Dangling Crane Was Weather-Vaned, Contractor Says Partially Collapsed Crane at NYC "Billionaire's Haven" Updated: Construction crews successfully tethered a dangling tower crane on West 57th Street in Midtown Manhattan on Nov. 3, allowing nearby buildings to re-open.Using a wrench on the turntable's pinion gear, workers hand-cranked the jib closer to the One57 building and then used cables to tie down the boom. Residents were soon after allowed to re-enter nearby buildings, which were closed for days after Hurricane Sandy struck the region.Emergency repair work

AP Wideworld The dangling crane was properly prepared for severe weather, says the project's construction manager. Related Links: Dangling New York City Tower Crane Is at Risk, Expert Says Key Risks Around Tower Cranes The Favelle Favco-brand tower crane-whose luffing jib dramatically flipped backwards as Superstorm Sandy blew into Midtown Manhattan-was properly prepared for wind, says the construction manager in charge of the project.Before the crane was called in to help build the roughly 1,000-ft-tall residential tower, engineers developed procedures for how to dress the crane, including weather-vaning it, prior to storms, according to one official for Lend Lease, the

Photo by Cathleen McGuigan for Architectural Record The crane atop One57, the rising $1.5 billion residential tower opposite Carnegie Hall, has fallen over in the winds of Hurricane Sandy. Related Links: Partially Collapsed Crane at NYC 'Billionaire's Haven' ENR.com Storm Updates The superstructure of a 1,000-ft-tall tower crane working in Midtown Manhattan left dangling from Hurricane Sandy is at risk of falling down into the streets, says one crane expert watching the event unfold from afar.Terry McGettigan, a tower crane expert in Seattle with 36 years of operating, maintenance and inspection experience, told ENR in a phone interview that the

Photo courtesy of NIOSH Hydraulic fracturing kicks up massive amounts of silica dust, a known health hazard linked to lung cancer. Photo by Tudor Van Hampton for ENR Chris Sneden, marketing manager for 3M, demonstrates a new tablet app on the National Safety Council exhibit floor in Orlando. Related Links: NIOSH on Frac Sand Dust Is Part of a Road-Milling Crew's Daily Grind The Occupational Safety and Health Administration says it is halting the development of a long-awaited silica dust regulation to study the respiratory hazards created during hydraulic fracturing operations. New research released earlier this year shows that fracking

Photo by Tudor Van Hampton for ENR Studying accidents only after they happen "is like driving a car looking through the rearview mirror," Ruebesam said. Related Links: Fluor Turns 100 Years Old ENR's Top 225 International Contractors Recognizing that studying past safety lapses is like driving a car while looking through the rearview mirror, Fluor Corp. has launched a company-wide effort this year to look ahead at leading safety indicators on its jobsites.Speaking at the National Safety Council's annual meeting Oct. 22 in Orlando, Jeffrey G. Ruebesam, Fluor's vice president of corporate health, safety and environment (HSE), said the company

For the fifth year in a row, Hino ranks highest in customer satisfaction for medium-duty trucks. Related Links: Truck Quality Suffers From Cleaner Diesels Read the J.D. Power Study Professionals using Class 5-7 work trucks are finding increased reliability from their engine and fuel systems, according to a new survey from J.D. Power and Associates. However, when breakdowns occur, they are more prolonged than before.Compared to other diesel emission controls, selective-catalytic reduction technology, which injects urea into the exhaust stream to neutralize tailpipe pollution, is preferred among these truck owners, the study notes. Overall

Photo courtesy of Caterpillar Inc. Cat's new hybrid excavator generated more than 300 patents. Related Links: At MINExpo, Iron Is Hot Despite Cooling Commodities Around the Block: Caterpillar D7E Seeking to deliver greater fuel efficiency in its line of earthmoving machines, Caterpillar Inc. has unveiled its first hybrid excavator, the 336E-H. The technology will pay back in as little as one year, the company says.With an operating weight of approximately 40 tons, the excavator cuts fuel consumption by 25% over its non-hybrid counterpart, the standard 336E, and 33% over the outgoing model, the 336D, Cat says. Measured in tons of

Photo courtesy of Link-Belt Link-Belt is switching to Cummins engines to meet federal Tier 4 diesel emissions regulations. Related Links: CBQ: Why Contractors Are Renting Rather Than Buying Three Ways Suppliers Will Meet Tier-4 Standards A federal rule that requires off-road suppliers to curb diesel emissions through 2015 is suffocating innovation by diverting valuable research and development dollars, experts say."It has been a drain on resources," admitted Chuck Martz, chairman and president of Link-Belt Construction Equipment Co. Martz spoke with ENR last month at the firm's global headquarters and factory in Lexington, Ky. "A lot of energy and effort has