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Absher Construction Company has been awarded a $174M contract by Sound Transit for the construction of Northgate railway station in Seattle, Washington.The scope of the contract will include the construction of an elevated station at Northgate, a parking garage with 450 stalls for transit users, and a transit island for light rail and bus connections.Construction work on the project is set to be complete in 2020, while construction work on underground stations in the Roosevelt and U District neighbourhoods will commence in 2017.Once service opens in 2021, the Northgate station will serve as the northern terminus for light rail until Lynnwood Link opens in 2023.The station is part of the $1.9bn Northgate Link extension project, which extends light rail 6.9km north from the University of Washington to a station next to the King County Northgate Transit Center.
An engineering solution devised by heavy lifting specialist Mammoet will be used in Malaysia to assist with the placement of large reactor vessels, as part of an expansion at a petrochemical complex.The expansion project includes the installation of new reactor vessels ranging up to 650t and over 100m tall.To overcome the site’s constraint operating area and low pipe rack, Mammoet has come up with a “unique solution” to install the vessels. The use of one of its PTC 35 ring cranes — with a capacity of up to 1,600t — will enable the vessels to be installed from a main road and lifted over the pipe rack. Mammoet APAC manager solutions Roel Wesel said: “Mammoet was able to provide our client with a unique solution that would optimize the handling of heavy vessels. Less movements on site results in reduced risks, reduced costs and a faster completion, reducing the overall time-to-market for our client.”
The Third Bosphorus Bridge in Turkey has opened to traffic.The hybrid cable-stayed bridge is part of the $5bn Northern Marmara Highway project that will link the cities of Odayeri and Paşaköy. The $3bn bridge — built in less than three years by IC Ictas and Astaldi consortium — holds the following records: • The only suspension bridge in the world with a deck that includes eight lanes for motorway and two railway lines at the same level; • The widest suspension bridge in the world at 59m; • The tallest A-shaped towers in the world at 322m — taller than the Eiffel tower; • The longest suspension bridge in the world with a deck that features a railway line. Paolo Astaldi, chairman of Astaldi Group, said: “The Third Bosphorus Bridge is a bridge of firsts that brings the industry of professional engineering to new heights. “Astaldi is proud to have played a leading role in this ground-breaking project that demanded the very best in engineering skill and advanced technology.“The bridge will not only bring new growth to the region and alleviate traffic pressure within Istanbul, but it will also create a new important link between Europe and Asia.”Construction work on the remaining sections of the motorway is underway.
The Great Ormond Street Hospital NHS Foundation Trust (GOSH) is seeking a design team and contractor for the £190M fourth phase of its redevelopment programme.RIBA Competitions, part of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), has launched a competitive dialogue process on GOSH’s behalf to select the multi-disciplinary team.Phase 4 will involve the replacement of out-dated facilities, as part of GOSH’s programme to rebuild two-thirds of the hospital’s site over a 20-year period.Peter Steer, chief executive of Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Foundation Trust, said: “We are excited to see how the world’s best design and construction experts can reflect our vision to create a building that supports our staff in their important work and nurtures our patients and their families through some of the most testing times of their lives. “We’re also looking forward to seeing how the designs can express the things that are special about GOSH, including our focus on carrying out world-leading research to find new treatments and cures that transform young lives.”Steer added: “Our guiding principle at GOSH is The Child First and Always, so it goes without saying that the design of the building must prioritise their needs. It should also celebrate the children and young people who are at the heart of everything we do.”Between three and six bid teams will be shortlisted and invited to participate in a three-month competitive dialogue programme to start in October 2016. The submission of final tenders will occur in February 2017. For more information please visit RIBA’s Memorandum of Information.
The International Organisation for Standardization (ISO) has laid down the design principles to create earthquake-resistant cranes. The new ISO 11031 can be used to calculate seismic loads, and sets out the design principles for cranes destined to work in seismically-active regions and for cranes required to be seismically-resistant.Klaus Pokorny, secretary of the ISO subcommittee working on design principles and requirements for cranes, said: “To make sure that cranes are safe, we first need to calculate the seismic loads that show how a crane will respond in moderate to severe earthquakes. Then you can use design limit states provided in two forms: serviceability limit and ultimate limit. “The serviceability limit state (SLS) ensures that the crane can withstand the effects of moderate earthquake ground motions throughout its service lifetime and continue to operate as intended. The ultimate limit state (ULS) requires that the crane structure should not collapse during severe earthquake ground motions, and that the suspended load or any other part of the crane should not fall or harm the public, operators and workers.” Pokorny added: “Any evaluation should take into account the regional seismic conditions as well as the ground surface conditions at the crane location. It’s also important to consider how the crane will be used and any risks that could result from seismic damage.“Not only will ISO 11031 add a layer of confidence to the industry, it also provides a common technical language so that manufacturers, users and owners understand each other clearly, no matter where they are — a boost for global trade.” The need of a standard to ensure seismic-resistant cranes was first highlighted by Japan, after the 1995 earthquake in Kobe.
Sustainable urban and business space solutions provider Ascendas-Singbridge is set to build a $400M IT park in Gurgaon, India. The new 60-acre International Tech Park Gurgaon (ITPG) will feature 743,000sq m of business space, as well as social amenities to meet the needs of 60,000 professionals. It will also include food courts along with banking, transport and covered parking spaces.The first phase of the project will include two buildings offering 93,000sq m of Grade-A business space. Work on the first building is currently underway, and is expected to be complete in the fourth quarter of 2017.Ascendas-Singbridge’s deputy group CEO Manohar Khiatani said: “ITPG will be our eighth IT Park in India and we are convinced that this development will enhance the attractiveness of the National Capital Region and help create quality jobs.”Ascendas-Singbridge India operations CEO Sanjay Dutt said: “Gurgaon is the focal point of economic growth in NCR and second largest office market in India with significant investments made by large multinational corporations. “With over two decades of experience in India, we will bring our best practices to ITPG and provide best-in-class business space and asset management services in Gurgaon, offering our clients an attractive business environment to operate in.”
Environmental remediation work has started on a new $340M mixed-use redevelopment project in midtown St. Louis, Missouri.The City Foundry Saint Louis at Cortex, the new name of the former Federal Mogul Foundry property, is being designed and developed by Lawrence Group.Phase one of the project will involve the creation of 4,500sq m of restaurant and food hall space, 11,500sq m of office space in the City Foundry building complex, 12,000sq m of retail space that will be home to up to 45 retailers, and a 511-car parking garage.The first phase, expected to open in 2018, will also include the creation of amenities such as public plaza spaces, bike share, electric recharge stations and dedicated ride sharing drop-off.Later phases of the project will include the construction of a 279-unit residential tower, 25,000sq m of office, as well as 1,500sq m of retail space.The project will involve significant reuse of the historic structures, and will be funded by Eagle Bank.According to Lawrence Group, Bull Moose Industries has become a major investment partner in the redevelopment.Bull Moose’s CEO Michael Blatz said: “This new investment by Lord Paul represents our continued confidence in St. Louis as well as our belief in the exciting vision laid out by Steve Smith for the City Foundry development.”
KfW IPEX-Bank and Landesbank Hessen-Thüringen (Helaba) have agreed to provide a $160M loan for the construction of the Peralta wind farm in Uruguay.The wind farm — located in the municipality of Cuchilla de Peralta in the department of Tacuarembó in central Uruguay — is being built by German wind turbine manufacturer Enercon and will have a total installed capacity of 117.5MW.Peralta will feature 50 Enercon E-92 wind turbines including a hub height of 108m, a rotor diameter of 92m and an output of 2,350kW per turbine. It will produce enough energy to supply around 150,000 Uruguayan households.The power produced in the facility will be sold to the national energy supplier Administración Nacional de Usinas y Trasmisiones Eléctricas (UTE), which signed a power purchase agreement for a period of 20 years. KfW IPEX-Bank management board member Markus Scheer said: “German and European wind technology is in demand internationally. This is a great opportunity — both for manufacturers and the environment. As a bank, we do our part in helping ideas and projects take concrete shape.”
PCL Construction has started construction on General Electric’s (GE) multi-modal “Brilliant Factory” in Welland, Canada.The plant — the first of its kind in Canada — will initially produce GE Power’s reciprocating gas engines, components for compression, mechanical drive and power generation, and components for GE transportation diesel engines.GE Canada president and CEO Elyse Allan said: “Export Development Canada’s (EDC) commitment to building global business activities and the outstanding support offered by the Ontario government, Niagara Region, and City strongly influenced our decision to build the factory in Welland. “I look forward to continuing our outstanding collaboration to create jobs and economic growth.”The plant is anticipated to create 220 jobs with operations commencing in early 2018. The first phase of the project is expected to cost $165M. According to GE, the multi-modal design enables future production expansion for its other businesses including power, oil & gas, and transportation.
Aguas de Rosarito (AdR), the special purpose project company owned by NuWater and N.S.C. Agua, has signed a public-private partnership contract with the state of Baja California, Mexico, for the design, construction, financing, and operation of a seawater desalination plant.The $490M desalination plant, which will have a daily capacity of up to 100M gallons, will be constructed in two phases.The first phase will have a daily capacity of 50M gallons and an aqueduct to the Mexican potable water system in Tijuana, Baja California. The second phase will have a daily capacity of 50M gallons and an aqueduct to a second delivery point in Tijuana.As per the contract, AdR will operate and maintain the plant and aqueducts for 37 years starting from the commencement of operation on the first phase.AdR has selected Degremont — a subsidiary of Suez Environmental of France — to design and construct the project.Rick McTaggart, CEO of Consolidated Water, N.S.C. Agua’s owner, said: "The execution of a definitive agreement to design, construct, finance and operate the 100M gallon per day Rosarito Seawater Desalination plant in Baja California, Mexico is the culmination of more than six years of development work by the Company and its partners."Phase one is set to be operational within 36 months, while the second phase is scheduled to be operational by the end of 2024.
Skanska USA has been awarded a $399M design-build contract by the Florida Department of Transportation for the construction of the Pensacola Bay Bridge in Florida, US.The contract will include the replacement of the existing bridge over Pensacola Bay with two new three-lane bridges, connecting the cities of Pensacola and Gulf Breeze.Each new bridge will have a length of about 5km. The total project length is about 6km, including the roadway approaches on each end of the bridges.Work on the project is scheduled to commence in the third quarter of 2016 and is set to be complete in August 2020.
UK-based construction services firm Kier Group has been awarded three construction frameworks in the UK, on projects with a combined value of more than £5bn.The company has been selected as one of six principle supply chain partners on the four-year £4bn Department of Health Procure22 framework, which commences in October 2016.The group has been also chosen as one of five suppliers on two five-year construction frameworks worth up to £750M at Gatwick Airport. The frameworks cover building and civil engineering projects up to £10M and smaller works for building projects up to £1.5M.Furthermore, it has secured a spot on the two-year £500M University of Cambridge scheme to provide a range of facilities including laboratories, teaching and lecture spaces and sports facilities.Kier Group CEO Haydn Mursell said: “These awards demonstrate the breadth of our offering and the strength of our relationships with clients across a wide range of sectors, including healthcare, aviation and education.“Such awards, which account for approximately half of our UK regional building revenues, enable us to work closely with our clients to deliver on their long-term requirements and they further bolster our strong construction order book.”
US-based logistics and shipping company UPS has announced a $310M project to expand its Centennial Ground hub in Louisville, Kentucky.The expansion will almost triple the size of the company’s facility to 78,000sq m. The move comes in response to increased e-commerce and traditional retail package volume.According to UPS, the project will nearly double its current sorting capacity to 85,000 packages per hour and add additional sorting automation equipment. Lou Rivieccio, president of UPS Ohio Valley District, said: “We are excited to have construction underway. This project is a win for everyone involved. It will benefit our customers, generate jobs, and enhance economic development in Louisville and the surrounding region.“Centennial offers UPS customers the advantage of being at the centre of the world’s largest package delivery company. It is one of UPS’ most important facilities.”The project will be delivered in three phases and is expected to continue through 2020. It will create 300 full and part-time jobs in the region.
Bilt Group’s residential development arm Vivere Group has submitted plans to Salford City Council for a £150M housing development in Manchester, UK.The City View project, designed by architect Fletcher Rae, will include the construction of four blocks rising from eight to 26 storeys in a 56,000sq m site. The development, to be located on a corner plot at the junction of Oldfield Road and the A57 Regent Road, will feature 525 flats — 488 apartments and 37 three-bed townhouses. It will also include an above-ground ‘sky garden’, a gym, a coffee shop, a concierge, 150 car parking spaces and 200 cycle spaces.Fletcher Rae’s joint managing director Andrew Rae said: “The form of the building responds directly to the vision of the site to create a viable and sustainable regeneration development in a strategic location on Regent Road.“The development will link to existing community infrastructure and adjacent developments. This proposal is intended to repair the severed link that exists between these communities and developments and create a much needed activity node for movement between these key places in the city.”If approved, construction work will commence in early 2018.
Skanska has secured an €197M order from Slovakia’s National Highway Authority, NDS, to extend the D1 highway in eastern Slovakia.The scope of the contract will include the construction of a 14.4km section between Budimír and Bidovce, including an additional 1.1km of express road (R2/R4). The section will include 23 bridges, four overpasses, and noise barriers.Construction on the project — funded by the European Regional Development Fund, OP Integrated Infrastructure 2014-20 and the state budget — is set to commence in November 2016 and is scheduled to be complete in December 2019.
Contractor A-one+ is resurfacing over 1.6km of the A1 at Brownieside in Northumberland using cold paving technology — a first for the UK.The company is using a bespoke Wirtgen CR 3200 machine to recycle the underlying layers of the road. The old surface material is churning up with new material within the machine, before laying it down immediately on the road behind. With the new method, 500 to 1,000t of road surface can be laid per hour — a significant increase when compared with the 100t per hour of conventional techniques.Additionally, it reduces the quarried stone used by 75%, the waste taken to landfill by 66%, and requires 70% fewer lorry trips to and from site. Steve Bishop, Highways England’s project manager, said: “This new technology is brilliant news for the thousands of drivers that use motorways and major A roads in the North East, who will benefit from smoother and safer journeys.“The road surface is designed to last for at least 10 years, meaning that we shouldn’t need to go back to carry out further repairs any time soon meaning less disruption for drivers.“This is the first machine of its type in the UK but the process is already successfully used in the USA, France and China. We are always working with our partners to trial new technologies that will help us to minimise disruption to drivers while we carry out essential road maintenance.”Work started at the beginning of August and is now finished.* More on cold paving technology in the UK and beyond here.
“The size of this project is remarkable — the viaduct is one of the largest in the world,” says Olivier Tricoire, Nouvelle Route du Littoral deputy director of operations. The ‘Nouvelle Route du Littoral’ is currently under construction in Réunion Island’s — a French department — Indian Ocean and is set to be one of the biggest projects ever undertaken by the French government. The 12.5km highway, parallel to the coast, will connect Saint Dennis with La Grande Chaloupe and replace the existing coastal road between Saint Dennis and La Possession. The existing road is exposed to sea spray when there’s heavy swell — frequently occurring due to the absence of a continental plateau — and to the falling of rocks. The 80,000 people who frequently use the road are often stuck in traffic jams, as the authorities have to close one or two lanes for a period of two months to a year. The new coastal highway will eliminate these issues, as it will be 20-30m above sea level — expected to be above the highest waves of the biggest storms. The €1.7bn development has been awarded to two joint ventures. The construction of the 5.4km viaduct section — €715M of works — is under the responsibility of the viaduct joint venture, which comprises Vinci Construction Grands Projects, Dodin Campenon Bernard, Bouygues Travaux Publics and Demathieu Bard. The second contract, worth €530M, has been awarded to a joint venture of Vinci Construction Terrassement and local companies SBTPC and Grands Travaux de l’Océan Indien, which will be responsible for the 6.7km of embankments and La Possession interchange. The dual carriageway will have two lanes in each direction, and has been designed to accommodate a rail line later on. Tricoire says: “The Regional council chose to not increase the personal vehicle capacity and instead to promote collective transport. The project includes lanes only for bus — and later tramway — and also pedestrian and bicycle ways.”
Recycling has never been more popular, with people encouraged to set aside paper, food, glass, plastic and more. But what about recycling our roads? Roads deteriorate over time, and rehabilitating works have to be carried out regularly — road signs warning about roadworks are a common sight. To make this rehabilitation more efficient, a time-saving and new environmentally-friendly technology has been introduced into the UK this year — having already been widely established in North America, Europe and China. The cold recycling technology involves the milling and granulation of damaged asphalt layers, which are then rebound, placed again and compacted. The cold recyclers — the machinery used in the process — recycle the underlying layers of the road. The old surface material is churned up with new binder in the machine’s mixing-chamber, before laying down the new, recycled mix immediately on the road behind. Mike Reay, managing director at Lane Rental Services which owns and operates the first UK cold recycler, says: “The recycling layer is the layer beneath the surface. Following the recycling a brand new surface course is installed — first a new structural re-strengthen layer is provided by the recycler and then a brand new layer, running surface, is provided straight after that’s been completed.”The cold recycler when operating in the project’s site needs the assistance of a second machine in order to complete the resurfacing work. “A final surfacing, after the recycling process, is always done with an asphalt paver,” says Martin Diekmann, Wirtgen’s recycling product manager. “This means that an average 4cm hot mix asphalt layer as a wearing course is paved on top of the recycled layer.”Wirtgen — the market leader in cold recycling technology — has sold 1,000 cold recycler machines worldwide so far, according to Diekmann, and this number is expected to grow.The cold recyclers can be used for thin asphalt layers or minor roads, as well as for thick asphalt or heavily-trafficked motorways. A UK firstThe first UK cold recycler made its way into the country three months ago. “I was aware of the machinery used in the States and also in Europe. I visited a site near Toulouse in France in 2015 and was impressed with the equipment,” says Reay.He adds: “This equipment has been tried and tested in the USA and Europe, therefore we had the confidence to introduce it to the UK.” The cold recycling technology was first used in the UK on a Highways England project to resurface 1.6km of the A1 at Brownieside in Northumberland. “I discussed it with AOne+ [the project’s contractor] and, obviously mindful of Highways England delivery programme requirements, we jointly decided the time was appropriate for this introduction to the UK. We ordered the machine and some trials schemes were authorised and have now been carried out,” says Reay.The Wirtgen 3200 CR cold recycler is owned and operated by Lane Rental Services and was especially custom-made for the project. Reay adds: “It has been custom-made for the UK market, not only for the 2016 works. It will be the UK machine.” The 3200 CR differs from the standard Wirtgen 2200 CR and 3800 CR on its operating width. While the 3200 CR cuts on a 3.2m width, the other two machines cut at 2.2 and 3.8m widths, respectively.
Construction work in Bahrain’s North City is set to start, after receiving AED374M ($101M) in funding from Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD).The country’s new city, also known as Al Madina Al Shamaliya, will eventually house up to 90,000 people in affordable accommodation. The funding will support the start of the land reclamation and the project’s construction work.The AED2.56bn ($696.9M) second phase of the project will follow and will involve construction of the first 2,694 houses.Bahrain minister of housing Basim Bin Yacob Al Hamer said: "We are hugely appreciative of this funding, which will help us [relieve] some of our chronic housing shortages here in Bahrain with the North City project. “I hope that such economic and social development, such as with our new airport, will be a catalyst for national and regional growth."According to the minister of housing, the development forms part of a broader plan to build 40,000 new homes.ADFD director general Mohammed Saif Al Suwaidi said: "The North City project is an important project, which will be an economic boost to Bahrain through new construction and opportunities, as well as easing urgent overcrowding issues.”
A CH2M and Parsons joint venture has won a contract from the District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority (DC Water) for its $1.3bn capital improvement programme (CIP).The improvement programme aims at repairing and replacing most of the underground water and wastewater infrastructure in Washington, D.C. and neighbouring jurisdictions.The JV will perform programme management services for the development and implementation of CIP.CH2M global water business group president Peter Nicol said: “CH2M has worked with DC Water for many years on capital improvement projects and most recently has been leading the utility’s Asset Management Program. “Aging underground infrastructure is a national problem and leads to disruptions in service and threatens water quality. We are excited to help DC Water tackle the complicated repair and replacement of its aging underground water and wastewater infrastructure to ensure local communities have access to safe drinking water and sanitation systems.”The CIP programme will involve the planning, design and construction of linear and vertical infrastructure in the water and wastewater service areas such as piping, pumping, storage and other appurtenance structures including hydrants, valves, inflatable dams, diversion structures and manholes.It will also involve the rehabilitation or replacement of small- and large-diameter water mains, the rehabilitation of water, sanitary and storm pumping stations, and the rehabilitation of minor and major sewers and storage facilities.
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