September 16, 2024

Check out the September 16, 2024 edition of ENR, featuring the building of the Giant Magellan Telescope, Top 250 International Contractors, news and more!

2024 ENR Top 250 International Contractors: Contractors Balance Higher Risks

Top 250 revenue rises 16.6% as the ripples of inflation, supply chain disruptions, climate change and regional conflict shift pain points and profitability.

Emell D. Adolphus

Jonathan Keller

September 11, 2024

No Comments

Revenue for the Top 250 International Contractors is at its highest since 2015, rising to $499.7 billion last year.

Tech Focus

A Place to Study Eternity: Building the Giant Magellan Telescope

Jeff Rubenstone

September 11, 2024

No Comments

The Giant Magellan Telescope will be one of the world's most advanced ground-based telescopes once completed, but for now the challenge is to turn the finalized design for its rotating enclosure into a buildable reality.

BIM

Bentley Buys Cesium, Geospatial Information and Digital Twin Platform

Cesium has deal with Google to create 3D Tiles for Google Earth

Jeff Yoders

September 9, 2024

No Comments

Bentley Systems acquired on Sept. 6 geographic information and 3D Tiles provider Cesium, with terms not disclosed for the deal set to close by the end of 2024.

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Clean Energy Policy

Committed to Ambitious Climate Goals, NY Unveils New Nuclear Push

Debra K. Rubin

September 11, 2024

No Comments

Gov. Kathy Hochul acknowledged likely state power shortfall with clean energy project delays and growing needs, but officials unveiled plan for smaller reactors at Sept. 5 energy summit—three years after close of controversial Indian Point facility.

Workforce

Career Training Program at Alcatraz Offers Bridge Between Military and Construction

Aileen Cho

August 26, 2024

No Comments

CPI Foundation summer training program on Alcatraz Island summer program is among those that have launched several potential construction careers.

Clean Energy

US Hydroelectric Dam Upgrades in 33 States Get $430M from Feds

Pam McFarland

September 5, 2024

No Comments

Capital improvements at 293 aging dams will be boosted in agency's first round of Infrastructure law funding.

Sports Venues

Denver Broncos Near Start of $175M Football Training Center and HQ

James Leggate

August 27, 2024

No Comments

Planned 205,000-sq-ft, three-story building would replace training center built in 1990 on a 26-acre campus in Englewood, Colo., according to the team.

Workforce

New Energy Construction Jobs Outpace Other Hiring Growth, Report Says

James Leggate

August 28, 2024

No Comments

Energy sector construction added nearly 90,000 U.S. jobs last year, a 4.5% increase and more than double the overall job growth rate—but will changing EV trends now put growth at risk?

Contractor J.A. Croson Reaches $1.6M Pact on Race Bias Charges

Richard Korman

September 3, 2024

No Comments

Florida-based specialty contractor denied the allegations outlined in a federal EEOC lawsuit but said settling the case was preferable to continued litigation.

Renewable Energy

Millions of Acres Added for Solar Power Projects on Public Land

Pam McFarland

August 30, 2024

No Comments

U.S. Bureau of Land Management releases proposal to direct expanded development on about 31 million acres in 11 western states.

Legal

$31.5M Settlement Reached in Contract Dispute between Judlau and the Illinois Tollway

Annemarie Mannion

August 29, 2024

No Comments

The settlement allows the tollway to move forward on the project with Illinois-based Walsh Construction, which had been the next lowest bidder.

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Power Supply

Ontario Opens Record Power Bid, But Adding Gas Fuels Controversy

David Godkin

Debra K. Rubin

September 11, 2024

No Comments

Province push to build up to 5 GW of new power in next decade includes controversial mix of natural gas, along with renewables and nuclear, in an “all-of-the above” approach to fill a projected 60% energy gap by 2050, said Energy Minister Stephen Lecce.

Infrastructure

Corps Moves to Final Phase of Nearly $1B Chickamauga Lock Replacement

Derek Lacey

September 6, 2024

No Comments

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers expects the new, larger lock to be operational in 2027.

Construction Technology

Autodesk Releases Strong Q2 Results, Touts New Transaction Model

Jeff Yoders

August 30, 2024

No Comments

Construction software vendor beat analysts' expectations with quarter earnings of $2.15 a share.

Legal

Marine Contractor Sues Seattle Over Ongoing Waterfront Pier Project

Tim Newcomb

September 4, 2024

No Comments

Pacific Pile & Marine asserts in a lawsuit that the city of Seattle failed to issue a needed change order for accelerated work the contractor performed as part of a major rebuilding of the city's waterfront.

Francis Scott Key Bridge

Kiewit Selected for Rebuild of Collapsed Baltimore Bridge

$1.2-billion bid was not the lowest submitted, but met other technical requirements, says state agency

Jim Parsons

August 29, 2024

No Comments

Technical qualifications took precedence over price in progressive design-build award.

Clean Energy Construction

Green Hydrogen Projects Advance in Developing Atlantic Canada Hub

David Godkin

Debra K. Rubin

September 1, 2024

No Comments

Black & Veatch completed early stage design this year on one developer's project to build a first phase 240,000-ton-per-year green hydrogen plant in Nova Scotia, and is set for more work on a larger facility planned in Newfoundland.

Airport Infrastructure

FAA Awards $2.1B in Airport Improvement Grants

Tom Ichniowski

September 9, 2024

No Comments

The largest award in this round is $55.1 million to Tucson International Airport to shift or reconfigure a runway.

Highway Infrastructure

US DOT Awards $1B for Roadway Safety Projects

Tom Ichniowski

September 5, 2024

No Comments

Among the largest grants in current agency funding round are awards of $25 million each to Milwaukee and Long Beach, Calif.

Pro-Bono Engineering

Engineering World Health Nonprofit Merges Into Engineers Without Borders

Jennifer Seward

September 9, 2024

No Comments

The two engineering nonprofits will combine infrastructure development and related expertise to generate more impact on resource-poor communities around the world.

Water Infrastructure

EPA Launches $7.5B Water Infrastructure Financing Round

James Leggate

September 6, 2024

No Comments

The low-cost WIFIA loans are available to support public water treatment, transmission and distribution, source, storage and other projects.

Massachusetts, Rhode Island Make Record Joint Offshore Wind Buy

Johanna Knapschaefer

Debra K. Rubin

September 9, 2024

No Comments

Massachusetts will take all but 200 MW of the 2.87-GW procurement, with the rest to Rhode Island, but bidders were wary, submitting for well under the 6.8-GW offered by the two states—and Connecticut failed to seek any capacity.

Construction Workforce

Contractors Kept Hiring in August as Industry Posts Jobs Gain of 34,000

Tom Ichniowski

September 6, 2024

No Comments

All construction industry segments added jobs, led by nonresidential specialty contractors.

Buildings Editor Nadine M. Post Retires From ENR Editorial Staff

Scott Blair

September 12, 2024

No Comments

It isn’t an exaggeration to say that Nadine M. Post is the top journalist on building design and construction and related topics. Her retirement after a 46-year association with ENR leaves a gap impossible to fill.

Construction History

From the ENR Archive: June 13, 1946

Scott Lewis

September 12, 2024

No Comments

This 1946 cover photo shows a stereoplanigraph, described as “one of the most universal and elaborate photomapping instruments ever constructed.”

ENR History

ENR Editor-in-Chief’s 1962 Tour Of Soviet Construction Projects

Scott Lewis

September 12, 2024

No Comments

One of the most notable reporting trips by an ENR editor took place in 1962 when ENR Editor-in-Chief Waldo G. Bowman attended the 29th Executive Meeting of the International Commission on Large Dams—held in Moscow—as a member of the U.S. delegation.

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Viewpoint: It's Time for The Great Civil Engineering Overhaul

William A. Wallace

August 29, 2024

2 Comments

Cutting carbon and hardening infrastructure both requires a revolution in how civil engineering is practiced, says veteran engineer and sustainability guru Bill Wallace.

Industry Leads for the Week of September 16, 2024

September 12, 2024

No Comments

Information derived from Industrial Reports, a market intelligence firm specializing in industrial construction and equipment leads. T

Cloud Technology and AI Help Masonry Firm Speed Payments

Jeff Yoders

September 12, 2024

No Comments

When Matt Andersen ended 20 years in public accounting and joined then-client Superior Masonry Unlimited as CFO in 2022, his first order of business was to modernize the specialty contractor’s accounting systems.

Construction Economics for September 16, 2024

September 12, 2024

No Comments

ENR’s 20-city average cost indexes, wages and materials prices. Historical data and details for ENR’s 20 cities can be found at ENR.com/economics

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Our Publications

ENR

Cover Story

2024 ENR Top 250 International Contractors: Contractors Balance Higher Risks

A Place to Study Eternity: Building the Giant Magellan Telescope

News

Bentley Buys Cesium, Geospatial Information and Digital Twin Platform

Committed to Ambitious Climate Goals, NY Unveils New Nuclear Push

Career Training Program at Alcatraz Offers Bridge Between Military and Construction

US Hydroelectric Dam Upgrades in 33 States Get $430M from Feds

Denver Broncos Near Start of $175M Football Training Center and HQ

New Energy Construction Jobs Outpace Other Hiring Growth, Report Says

Contractor J.A. Croson Reaches $1.6M Pact on Race Bias Charges

Millions of Acres Added for Solar Power Projects on Public Land

$31.5M Settlement Reached in Contract Dispute between Judlau and the Illinois Tollway

Ontario Opens Record Power Bid, But Adding Gas Fuels Controversy

Corps Moves to Final Phase of Nearly $1B Chickamauga Lock Replacement

Autodesk Releases Strong Q2 Results, Touts New Transaction Model

Marine Contractor Sues Seattle Over Ongoing Waterfront Pier Project

Kiewit Selected for Rebuild of Collapsed Baltimore Bridge

Green Hydrogen Projects Advance in Developing Atlantic Canada Hub

FAA Awards $2.1B in Airport Improvement Grants

US DOT Awards $1B for Roadway Safety Projects

Engineering World Health Nonprofit Merges Into Engineers Without Borders

EPA Launches $7.5B Water Infrastructure Financing Round

Massachusetts, Rhode Island Make Record Joint Offshore Wind Buy

Contractors Kept Hiring in August as Industry Posts Jobs Gain of 34,000

Buildings Editor Nadine M. Post Retires From ENR Editorial Staff

Departments

From the ENR Archive: June 13, 1946

ENR Editor-in-Chief’s 1962 Tour Of Soviet Construction Projects

Viewpoint: It's Time for The Great Civil Engineering Overhaul

Industry Leads for the Week of September 16, 2024

Cloud Technology and AI Help Masonry Firm Speed Payments

Construction Economics

Construction Economics for September 16, 2024

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