Preliminary analysis of a ceiling light fixture that fell into moving traffic in early February at Boston's Big Dig tunnel system suggests the fixture shows signs of severe corrosion caused by salt from snow and ice treatment. Related Links: Corrosion's High Cost: Rust Never Sleeps Performed by West Boylston, Mass.-based Massachusetts Materials Research, the analysis indicates the fixture failed because of severe corrosion to the aluminum wire way at the locations where the light assembly was attached with stainless-steel clips, according to a Massachusetts Dept. of Transportation report released on April 13. The incident caused no injuries and no property

Even though corrosion causes substantial damage to U.S. infrastructure every year, “corrosion is not well understood,” says Ted Greene, professor of mechanical engineering at the Wentworth Institute of Technology, Boston. Related Links: MassDOT Study Blames Salt For Big Dig's Fallen Light Fixture Receiving support from NACE International—originally known as the National Association of Corrosion Engineers—a Federal Highway Administration study on the direct costs associated with metallic corrosion in nearly every U.S. industry sector suggested the total annual estimated direct cost in the U.S. is $276 billion, about 3.1% of the nation's GDP. When indirect costs are included, that total is

Even though corrosion causes substantial damage to U.S. infrastructure every year, “corrosion is not well understood,” says Ted Greene, professor of mechanical engineering at the Wentworth Institute of Technology, Boston. Receiving support from NACE International—originally known as the National Association of Corrosion Engineers—a Federal Highway Administration study on the direct costs associated with metallic corrosion in nearly every U.S. industry sector suggested the total annual estimated direct cost in the U.S. is $276 billion, about 3.1% of the nation's GDP. When indirect costs are included, that total is estimated to be as high as $552 billion.The corrosion of metals depends

Preliminary analysis of a ceiling light fixture that fell into moving traffic in early February at Boston's Big Dig tunnel system suggests the fixture shows signs of severe corrosion caused by salt from snow and ice treatment. Performed by West Boylston, Mass.-based Massachusetts Materials Research, the analysis indicates the fixture failed because of severe corrosion to the aluminum wire way at the locations where the light assembly was attached with stainless-steel clips, according to a Massachusetts Dept. of Transportation report released on April 13. The incident caused no injuries and no property damage.In a report released on April 6, MassDOT

New Hampshire landowners are fighting the Northern Pass project, a $1.1-billion transmission line designed to import a reliable source of renewable hydropower from Canada into New England, where transmission and generation are constrained. Developers of the 180-mile line recently agreed to remove five alternatives for the line and focus on routes that would use existing rights-of-way south of Groveton, N.H., as well as a preferred route and several alternatives to the north that would require new rights-of-way. In an April 12 filing with the U.S. Dept. of Energy, Northern Pass officials successfully obtained an extension until June 14 to identify

Two months after a 110-lb light fixture fell onto a roadway along Boston’s Big Dig highway project, Massachusetts Dept. of Transportation inspectors have found some corrosion in the 23,000 lighting fixtures that line the Central Artery tunnel. In the wake of the resignation of a highway administrator following a delay in notifying the public about the fixture, the agency’s operational procedures are under scrutiny. “I have acknowledged our failure to alert the public in a timely manner and the lapse in our internal communications, which we are currently working to address,” state transportation Secretary Jeffrey Mullan says. “We are continuing

The state of Massachusetts is seeking damages from the manufacturer of a 110-lb light fixture that fell onto a Central Artery tunnel roadway in early February. The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority informed the public about the incident last week. “One of the 23,000 light fixtures in the Central Artery Tunnel system fell onto the roadway on the morning of February 8,” says a spokesperson for the MBTA. Although there were no injuries or property damage, the incident has reignited concerns about safety of the $2 billion project. The Massachusetts Dept. of Transportation claims it immediately began to inspect all of

Despite the headline-grabbing attention of federal deficits and budget cuts, the real problems facing construction remain the prolonged recession in the private nonresidential building markets, the weakening of the once-dependable public markets, a stalled housing recovery teetering on the brink of slipping back into recession and high unemployment. That does not add up to a quick recovery, which in turns equals low inflation abetted by desperate bidding. The sudden turnaround from the Keynesian economics of stimulus to the Hoover-era economics of austerity only make the outlook bleaker. Related Links: Confidence Survey: Top Industry Execs Believe the Market Has Turned a

With optimism surrounding a market upswing, contractors seem to be willing to offer higher compensation to talented top-level executives as a strategic way to adapt to new markets and draw in new business. Related Links: Economics: Japan Quake Won�t Shake Up Costs as Recession Trumps Rising Prices Confidence Survey: Top Industry Execs Believe the Market Has Turned a Corner Bidding: Price Escalations May Lead Aggressive Bidders To Default Asphalt: Weak Demand vs High Oil Prices Internet: Finding Cost Data on ENR.com: Cost Indexes, Wages and Prices Methodology: As the Construction Recovery Stalls, What Is the Impact on Inflation? Indexes: How

The new $21.5-million Norridgewock Bridge—one of only two modern tied-arch concrete bridges to be built in the U.S.—is taking shape over the Kennebec River in northern Maine. Photo:Courtesy Of Kleinfelder New Maine crossing replicates concrete tied-arch design, only one of two in the U.S., according to the owner. The new bridge includes a 300-ft center span and two 150-ft approach spans. Four of six transverse braces are now in place, along with 19 intermediate floor beams and three end beams. When opened this fall, it will replace a four-span concrete tied-arch bridge built in 1928, which was one of the