Even as U.K.-based oil giant BP remains in the U.S. government’s crosshairs for environmental damage resulting from the Deepwater Horizon drill-rig explosion that killed 11 workers April 20, it now faces record fines and new scrutiny over another fatal accident five years ago at a land-based company facility in Texas. Photo: Courtesy of U.S. Occupational Safety And Health Administration Explosion in 2005 killed 15 contractor employees and injured 170 others at Texas City site. OSHA’s fine is the highest single penalty ever to be issued for a single event. Photo: Courtesy of U.S. Occupational Safety And Health Administration In addition

A construction worker died on August 16 while working on the Gilcrease Expressway expansion in Tulsa, Okla. Tulsa Police and Fire Departments responded at about 9:30 a.m. to find Noe Mendoza, 45, an employee of Plains Bridge Contracting of Yukon, Okla., struck and killed by a piece of heavy equipment. Bill French, spokesman for Tulsa Fire, says Mendoza was hit by a 120,000-lb road spreader, with a big diesel-driven scraper to pick up pavement, and was “graphically” dead at the scene. Tulsa Police handled the scene, as they would for a fatal traffic accident, he said. Tulsa Police Dept. public

Even as U.K.-based oil giant BP remains in the U.S. government’s crosshairs for environmental damage resulting from the Deepwater Horizon drill-rig explosion that killed 11 workers April 20, it now faces record fines and new scrutiny over another fatal accident five years ago at a land-based company facility in Texas. Photo: Courtesy of U.S. Occupational Safety And Health Administration. Explosion in 2005 killed 15 contractor employees and injured 170 others at Texas City site. OSHA’s fine is the highest single penalty ever to be issued for a single event. Photo: Courtesy of U.S. Occupational Safety And Health Administration In addition

Schools all over Texas have inspected stadium lighting poles manufactured by Whitco Co. LLP of Fort Worth after 11 confirmed incidents occurred involving the 70-ft or taller defective steel poles. Photo: Hays ISD Photo: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission CPSC has announced a recall to repair Whitco stadium light poles. CPSC has confirmed eleven incidents in which Whitco Co. LP poles fell. In one incident last year, a pole fell through the roof of a school gymnasium in Central Texas, causing significant property damage. More than 50 people were inside the facility at the time. Local media reporting on the

After at least 11 confirmed incidents involving defective light poles, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission on July 6 issued a repair notice covering more than 2,500 of the standards already placed in stadiums around the U.S. The poles, which typically weigh one to four tons and soar up to 135 ft above the ground, were manufactured by a now-defunct Texas firm, Fort Worth-based Whitco Co. LP. Photo Courtesy Of Hays ISD Inspections for defects have been ordered for more than 2,500 poles manufactured by the now defunct Whitco. There were no known injuries, but several close calls were reported.

The city of Fort Worth expects to save $65 to $58 million in program costs for $2 billion in planned infrastructure projects over the next five years under a new integrated program management system. The city worked with a consulting team led by CH2M HILL, Englewood, Colo, to streamline project delivery. Fort Worth expects to deliver projects six months earlier with its new IPM. The city’s project delivery capacity has now increased by 50%, from $240 million to $480 million annually. “The city needs more project managers, but cannot afford to hire them in the current economic climate,” says William

Amid political and environmental conflicts over Texas air quality, International Power announced on June 14 a long-awaited powerplant expansion in south Texas. Barring intercession by the courts, the Coleto Creek Unit Two project is expected to ramp up next year, creating more than 1,000 construction jobs by 2015, when it is scheduled to come online. Rendering: International Power To some, the Coleto powerplant means more power and jobs; however, to others—including the Lone Star chapter of the Sierra Club—it just means more dirty air. The $1.4-billion expansion project will add a 650-MW coal-burning powerplant to International Power’s existing Coleto Unit

Amid political and environmental conflicts over Texas air quality, International Power announced a long-awaited powerplant expansion in South Texas. Barring intercession by the courts, the Coleto Creek Unit Two project is expected to create more than 1,000 construction jobs by 2015, when it is scheduled to come on line. Rendering courtesy South Texas Electric Coop. The $1.4-billion expansion project will add a 650-MW coal-burning power plant to International Power’s existing Coleto Creek Unit One at its power station in Goliad County. Michael Fields, director of expansion for International Power, says that after a six-month open-bid period, the company expects to

Texas’ capital city is living up to its reputation as the U.S. city most poised to quickly recover from the economic downturn. Forbes, for one, made this prediction last summer when it said the Austin-Round Rock area tops the list of “best cities for recession recovery.” Then, on June 9, as if on script, Samsung Electronics, Seoul, South Korea, announced it will invest $3.6 billion to expand the capacity of its existing semiconductor plant in Austin. The investment in the 300-acre Austin campus, the company’s only semiconductor fabrication site outside South Korea, will build out the second phase of its

Texas’ capital city is living up to its reputation as the U.S. city most poised to quickly recover from the economic downturn. Forbes magazine, for one, made this prediction last summer when it said the Austin-Round Rock area tops the list of “best cities for recession recovery.” Then June 9, as if on script, Samsung Electronics, Seoul, South Korea, announced it will invest $3.6 billion to expand the capacity of its existing semiconductor plant in Austin. Courtesy Samsung Austin Semiconductor LLC An aerial shows Samsung�s Austin campus, the company�s only semiconductor fabrication site outside South Korea. A $3.6-billion plant upgrade