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Construction Dive’s Friday Punch List is a series dedicated to sharing the top building headlines that contractors may have missed during the week.
This week in construction news, a joint venture of JE Dunn and Alberici broke ground on a $3.2 billion Texas shipyard, and Northrop Grumman and the Air Force began construction on a $4.5 billion shipyard. expansion to a California manufacturing plant.
But the week’s news wasn’t just about megaprojects gone awry. Read on for other news construction executives should know.
HNTB selected for 2 Maryland Amtrak bridges
Amtrak has engaged civil engineering firm HNTB to provide architectural and engineering services for the replacement of two bridges in Maryland along a 20-mile segment of the Northeast Corridor, the contractor announced Oct. 9.
The Bush River and Gunpowder River bridge replacements will support efforts to improve one of the the busiest passenger rail corridors in the country. The tracks carry more than 100 passenger and freight trains daily, per Amtrak.
The upgrades will target track alignment, signal systems and electric traction while increasing the speeds the 113-year-old bridges can handle. Amtrak 2022-2023 Grants Program Sheet Posted the total costs of the project of the Gunpowder River and Bush River bridges at $1.3 billion and $743.5 million, respectively.
Preliminary engineering is scheduled to conclude in 2029, according to Amtrak.
—Zachary Phillips
Turner saw costs rise 5.5% year over year in the third quarter
Turner Construction said data centers, mission-critical facilities, semiconductors and large public projects continued to drive demand in the third quarter, according to its Construction cost index released on Tuesday
The index, which New York City-based Turner has published for more than 80 years, showed costs rose 1.5 percent from the second quarter and 5.5 percent year over year.
Campus and industrial buildings also added momentum. However, labor challenges and material costs continued to put pressure on the projects.
“The US construction market continues to show resilience, with significant opportunities in key sectors and regions,” said Attilio Rivetti, vice president responsible for compiling the Turner Construction Cost Index. “At the same time, skilled labor, particularly mechanical and electrical, remains a persistent constraint, and we are seeing renewed pressure on material costs and delivery times.”
—Joe Bousquin
CMAA elects the new president of the board of directors
The Construction Management Association of America has chosen Michael Mendick as a new president of its board of directorsaccording to a Monday announcement. The move comes just weeks after the association selected Kevin Watkins as its next CEO.
Mendick served on the CMAA board of directors for five years and previously served as vice president and president of the CMAA Connecticut chapter.
Mendick currently works as a district engineer with the Connecticut DOT, where he leads the department’s construction project management efforts, according to the announcement. Notable projects include the $700 million CTfastrak bus rapid transit system and the WALK bridge program, a $2 billion program replacing the older mobile span of the Northeast Corridor.
— Matthew Thibault
AECOM appoints new global head of transport
AECOM has selected Dwight Pullen as a managing director of its global transport businessaccording to a Monday press release.
According to the company, Pullen brings more than 30 years of experience in the transportation industry, including the delivery of major infrastructure programs and global business leadership. He joined the company in 2022 to lead its aviation business and later expanded into surface transportation as well.
Pullen succeeds Russell Jackson, who served as interim chief executive of the global transportation business line. Jackson will continue as AECOM’s global director of rail and transit, according to the press release.
—Sebastian Obando
Manhattan Construction executive retires after 43 years
Brian Killion, vice president and regional manager of Manhattan Construction, has retired after 43 years, according to a Thursday announcement shared with Construction Dive.
Killion joined Manhattan in Tulsa, Oklahoma in 1983 after graduating from Oklahoma State University, according to the announcement. In 1984, he accepted what was initially a short-term transfer to Northern Virginia, which began his foray into growing the company’s presence in the Mid-Atlantic, where he helped lead more than $4.1 billion in construction projects.
— Matthew Thibault
