Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn, N.Y., announced two new arrests this month related to an ongoing probe of corruption on construction projects for New York City utility Consolidated Edison Corp. The investigation had led to charges filed in January against 10 current and former Con Ed construction officials who allegedly accepted $1 million in kickbacks from contractors, but the contractors were neither identified nor charged at the time. Now U.S. Attorney Benton J. Campbell has said the alleged corruption occurred in connection with work at Metropolitan Transit Authority and city Dept. of Environmental Protection jobsites where Con Ed was working. According
Constantine "Taki" Papadakis, the president of Drexel University in Philadelphia and one of a few civil engineers to be running a major academic institution, died unexpectedly April 5 at age 63. According to the university, his death was related to pulmonary complications, although he was in remission from cancer. Photo: Courtesy of Drexel University Constantine "Taki" Papadakis Papadakis, a management veteran of three construction industry firms, joined Drexel in 1995, at a time when its enrollment, physical plant and bottom line had sunk to new depths. But during the 14 years of his presidency the university experienced an academic and
The forecast shrinks the anticipated decline in 2009 construction starts to 15% from an earlier estimate of 20% or more. This is fueled by weak residential and commercial markets and the “emerging loss of momentum for institutional building,” according to the report. Projections say the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 will hike public works project starts by 10%, “enough to cushion what was shaping up to be a particularly tough year for construction,” says the report by MHC, publisher of ENR. “The public works jump-start will be the saving grace for the year,” says Robert A. Murray, MHC
Tough economic times around the world are taking a toll on global construction spending. Back-to-back annual declines have been reported for the first time in two decades, according to results of an annual survey of 69 construction markets. In its 2009 global construction outlook, IHS Global Insight Construction Services, Lexington, Mass., projects a 3.7% decline in total global spending this year, to $5.6 trillion. This dip would come on top of a 1.2% drop in 2008. The combined figures represent “the steepest decline in global construction spending in at least 20 years,” says Scott Hazelton, the research firm’s director of
Evan Thomas and Max Gold were two of Bernard Amadei’s earliest disciples in Engineers Without Borders-USA as undergrads at the University of Colorado-Boulder. Now they are taking their EWB-USA site experiences and soon-to-be-earned graduate engineering degrees in a new direction to build sustainability and long-term earning power in developing communities that once could only hope for philanthropy. Photo: Manna Energy Foundation Manna’s Gold (above) with Rwanda site colleagues; Thomas and client (below) Photo: EWB-USA Related Links: 2008 Award Of Excellence Winner: Bernard Amade Engineers Go Global Looking for a Home Depot in Veron, Dominican Republic Thomas and Gold are leveraging
Alejandra Deza, a junior aerospace engineering major on her first Engineers Without Borders project trip abroad, was scouting storefronts in Veron, Dominican Republic, for a “ferreteria,” the local version of a Home Depot.
Adjust to new realities, give employees a cause to fight for and focus on opportunities: Executives of three design and construction firms offered those strategies as ways for the industry to cope with the current financial crisis. The executives joined other leaders from industry, government and Wall Street at an ENR/McGraw-Hill Construction conference in New York City last month to analyze economic developments and optimize solutions. Ira Levy, president of AECOM’s DMJM Harris unit in New York City, acknowledged that his firm’s revenue will shrink, but he said profitability could still survive. He noted, “A better question to ask is,
URS Corp. announced strong results for its latest fiscal year, ending Jan. 2, relecting the full benefits of its 2007 acquisition of Washington Group Inc. and strength in core federal and infrastructure markets. Company executives are confident the firm is postioned strongly enough in key markets to weather current economic difficulties and be optimistic about 2010. The engineering-contracting giant reported nearly $10.1 billion in revenue for its fiscal 2008, up 87.4% from the previous year. Net income increased 66.3% to nearly $220 million, which Chairman and CEO Martin M. Koffel labeled "record profits." Koffel attributed margin improvements largely to cost
Adjust to the new realities, give employees a cause to fight for and focus on opportunities. That�s how leaders of three design and construction companies described methods of fending off despair and rallying staffs during the financial crisis that has engulfed global economies and the construction industry. They joined other market sector leaders from industry, government and Wall Street to analyze current realities and optimize solutions at �Managing Construction�s Financial Crisis,� an ENR/McGraw-Hill Construction-sponsored conference in New York City Feb. 24-25. Photo: Richard Korman/ENR Siegel: When time are tough, great companies capture market share. Ira Levy, president of AECOM’s DMJM
