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Skanska has completed a $380 million project at Los Angeles International Airport focused on roads and utility work, according to an announcement shared with Construction Dive.
The Los Angeles World Airports Roads, Utilities and Enabling Project improved public transit access at LAX and links four adjacent projects to reduce congestion and help travelers at one of the world’s busiest airports, according to a July 22 announcement.
The roads, public services and habilitation project was a series of 16 small but high-priority projects needed for LAX’s $5.5 billion ground access modernization program, which includes SkyLink, formerly known as the Automated People Mover, a rental car center and parking, LAWA’s website says. Construction work, which began in November 2020, included the relocation of utilities and road improvements.
The project delivered about 365,000 square feet of street paving around the airport and surrounding transportation network, Skanska spokeswoman Meghan Carvalho told Construction Dive via email. Carvalho said crews installed 8 miles of pavement striping lanes and road markings as part of the road work, as well as 1.5 miles of bike lanes.
Skanska USA Civil, the US infrastructure arm of the Stockholm-based builder, completed the work in May, according to the announcement. He has since published a case study highlighting the company’s impact miscellaneous business outreach.
Small business goals
Skanska said it exceeded all of its targets for the participation of small and local businesses in multiple categories, including:
- $91 million, or 24%, of awards to 139 small businesses, above the 20% target.
- $89.7 million, or 24%, of awards to 52 local companies, above the 7% target.
- $44.2 million, or 12% to 40 local small businesses, above the 3% target.
- $18.8 million, or 5%, to 19 disabled veteran commercial businesses, above the 3% target.
In total, Skanska says it hired 152 certified suppliers and subcontractors for 170 contracts worth more than $160.5 million. The largest number of contracts were due to companies working for multiple companies, depending on the level at which they were hired.
“When local businesses are given a real opportunity, the benefits extend far beyond the workplace,” Teresa Maxwell, Skanska USA Civil West’s manager of inclusion, said in the release. “This kind of success is exactly what makes Los Angeles’ infrastructure more resilient, more representative and more impactful.”
The Skanska case study attributes the achievement of these targets to active and frequent outreach, including 368 events and trainings, with 1,790 companies invited to bid. This was only possible through partnerships with trade groups, the case study says, such as the National Association of Women in Construction and the National Association of Minority Contractors.
“True inclusion doesn’t just check a box, it elevates project quality, strengthens the workforce and creates lasting impact for communities in the LAX Airport impact area,” NAMC SoCal President Traci Watson said in the text of the case study.
Community outreach programs
As part of LAWA RUE’s work, Skanska supported the HireLAX apprenticeship readiness program, which trains local residents in construction apprenticeships and places them on LAWA construction jobs through local contractors and trades unions.
Since launch, HireLAX has graduated more than 375 participants and placed more than 264 in union construction jobs, according to Skanska’s statement.
During the RUE project, there were a total of 2,258 craft/union workers, according to the Skanska case study, with 706 local workers, exceeding the LAWA project labor agreement’s 30% local procurement target.
