Know What's Happening in Construction
Know What's Happening in Construction
U.S. Cement Shipments Dip 1.7% in 2025 as December Volume Slightly Rises
December 2025 cement shipments reached an estimated 6.82 million metric tons, a modest rise from 6.79 Mt a year earlier. Yet total shipments for the year fell 1.7% to about 101 Mt compared with 2024. Blended cement is overwhelmingly Type IL, making up 96% of blended tonnage, with Texas the top producer and consumer.
The Queensland Government’s Games Independent Infrastructure and Coordination Authority (GIICA) has finalized key design details for the new 63,000‑seat Brisbane Stadium, slated for the 2032 Olympics. The venue will sit centrally in Victoria Park near Gilchrist Avenue, using an east‑west field orientation and a playing surface the size of the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Early site preparation begins in June 2026 with construction slated for 2027. The stadium will host opening and closing ceremonies, athletics, para‑athletics, AFL and cricket, becoming home to the Brisbane Lions, Heat and Queensland Bulls.
San Antonio’s City Council approved an $11 million safety program—$8 million in federal funds matched by $3 million locally—to redesign a five‑mile stretch of Culebra Road, the city’s most crash‑prone non‑freeway corridor. The segment recorded 116 severe or fatal crashes between 2018 and...
The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority approved the San Vicente‑Fairfax corridor as the Locally Preferred Alternative for the K Line Northern Extension on March 26, 2026. The 6‑7 km underground project will use twin bored tunnels and new stations built...
The Construction Leadership Council (CLC) warned that soaring fuel prices are the biggest risk to the UK construction sector, pushing up costs for energy‑intensive materials and imported tiles. Output fell 2% in the three months to January 2026, marking a...
The Crescenta Valley Water District (CVWD) deployed Mueller remote pressure loggers and altered pump operations to combat frequent leaks caused by aging pipes and pressure surges. Real‑time data fed into its water‑management platform enabled staggered pump scheduling, expanded tank levels,...
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has approved a $610 million Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) loan to the Grand Prairie Water Commission. The financing will fund a 62‑mile transmission pipeline that will shift roughly 300,000 residents in northeastern Illinois...
Railpen, Socius and Morgan Sindall celebrated the topping out of MY Central, the five‑storey office core of the £180 million Mill Yard mixed‑use campus in Cambridge. The development will host 110,000 sq ft of flexible workspaces, 70 build‑to‑rent apartments, a nursery, retail and a public park,...
The Future Homes Hub has created a Water Smart Growth Board (WSGB) to coordinate water‑wise strategies for new housing across England. Drawing on Ofwat’s Enabling Water Smart Communities project, the board brings senior leaders from government, housing, water utilities, regulators...
ACCIONA, together with Dragados and Rover, has begun excavating a 5.6 km tunnel for the Madrid Metro Line 11 extension between Comillas and Conde de Casal. The work uses Herrenknecht’s 9.4 m diameter EPBM “Mayrit”, which will install 8.34 m internal‑diameter segmental linings. The...
Swiss chemicals group Sika has taken a strategic stake in MESH AG, an ETH Zurich spin‑off that develops robot‑assisted reinforcement manufacturing, as part of a CHF 2.9 million funding round that also includes ABB Robotics and Shimizu Corporation. The investment will fund...
Florida International University’s new pedestrian bridge is set to reopen within months, eight years after the 2018 collapse that killed six people. The original $14.2 million structure failed due to a critical design miscalculation and premature installation on temporary supports. The...
Utah’s Department of Transportation is committing $2.8 billion to 176 construction projects across the state, with more than 50 already breaking ground. The centerpiece is a $621 million freeway link between Mountain View Corridor and I‑15 in Utah County, complemented by major...
The American Water Works Association released a report warning that U.S. drinking‑water infrastructure will require between $2.1 trillion and $2.4 trillion over the next 25 years. Current capital spending averages $33.6 billion annually, far below the $90.2 billion needed, creating a $56.6 billion annual gap....
Skanska has secured three contracts worth $313 million across the United States and Sweden. The deals include a $165 million biology research building for Texas A&M University, a $102 million Avalon pedestrian bridge in Los Angeles, and a $46 million high‑school project in Halmstad....
Colorado Department of Transportation launched a $1.45 million conflict‑warning project to install radar‑based flashing signs at four high‑risk rural intersections along CO 83, CO 86 and CO 74. Sturgeon Electric began work on March 9, with a second phase adding lane closures on March 23, and...
The U.S. Department of Transportation has finally released the $1.05 billion grant to replace the aging Blatnik Bridge, a key link between Superior, Wisconsin and Duluth, Minnesota. The funding, initially delayed by a federal review of Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act...
Miami‑Dade Water and Sewer Department has finished a major upgrade at the Central District Wastewater Treatment Plant, adding advanced centrifuge and gravity‑belt thickening and dewatering facilities. The new system can process nearly 530,000 pounds of biosolids each day, cutting processing...
Tampa City Council approved funding to design a 140‑million‑gallon‑per‑day Suspended Ion Exchange (SIX) system at the David L. Tippin Water Treatment Facility, marking the world’s largest and first full‑scale U.S. deployment. The project, led by Garney, Wharton‑Smith, and Carollo Engineers,...
During its seventh Allocation Round, the UK held Europe’s largest offshore wind auction, awarding contracts for 8.4 GW of new capacity—enough to power roughly 10 million homes. The upcoming Allocation Round 8 aims to push capacity toward 10 GW, supported by radar system upgrades....
New South Wales and Queensland will adopt the 2025 update of the National Construction Code (NCC 2025) on 1 May 2027, giving the construction sector just over a year to adjust. The NCC 2025 introduces modest changes, including commercial energy‑efficiency, water‑management, fire‑safety, condensation control,...
Construction firms generate ample enquiries but struggle to turn them into profitable projects due to inefficient conversion processes. Many contractors produce detailed estimates for every lead without qualifying prospects, leading to wasted time and thin margins. By implementing lead‑qualification systems,...
Indiana is expanding its Safe Zones program by adding speed‑camera enforcement to four highway construction zones, including I‑70 near Greenfield, I‑65 in Jasper County, and a new stretch on I‑74 southeast of Indianapolis. The pilot, which began in August 2024 and...
Wyoming Department of Transportation launched the Kemmerer South Wildlife Crossings project to install multiple underpasses, an overpass, and fencing along a 30‑mile stretch of US 189. The $38 million effort, funded by federal, state and private partners, aims to cut wildlife‑vehicle crashes...
The EPA announced a $38 million WIFIA loan to fund the Signal Hill Water Treatment Plant Optimization and Expansion Project in Summit County, Utah. The loan will double the plant’s capacity, serving roughly 24,000 residents and preparing for the 2034 Winter...
Four consortia have entered a competitive dialogue to design and build the underground rail station and 6 km tunnel beneath Poland’s Centralny Port Komunikacyjny (CPK) airport. The contract, split into a station‑hub lot and a western tunnel lot, targets award in...
U.S. water utilities face growing risk of “water bankruptcy,” as illustrated by Corpus Christi, Texas, where reservoirs are at historic lows and a desalination project ballooned from $220 million to $1.2 billion before being cancelled. Aging pipes, unpredictable supply and rising industrial...
Bankstown unveiled a 90‑metre tree‑lined plaza ahead of the Metro Southwest launch, creating a pedestrian corridor between the town centre and surrounding suburbs while linking directly to buses, trains and the upcoming metro services. The precinct upgrade adds new seating,...
Victoria’s Department of Transport has approved a $15 million upgrade of the Mary Gilmore Way intersection in Bribbaree, targeting smoother traffic flow and enhanced safety. The project will install modern traffic signals, add dedicated turning lanes, and upgrade pedestrian crossings, with...
The New South Wales government has awarded Ertech Pty Ltd an $85.1 million (≈ $56 million USD) contract to upgrade Wakehurst Parkway on Sydney’s Northern Beaches. The project, slated to start mid‑year, will address chronic peak‑hour congestion, high‑risk crash sites, and flood‑prone sections between...
The 2026 Future of Construction Summit (FCON26) will convene in Brisbane on May 19‑20, gathering more than 800 senior delegates and over 120 speakers. The event’s expanded program features three dedicated tracks—Technology and Digital Delivery, Net Zero Construction, and Project...
