Clayco Tackles ‘Burnout’ as Jobsite Safety Risk in New Initiative
Chicago‑based design‑build firm Clayco announced a partnership with the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) to launch a program aimed at mitigating burnout among construction craft workers. The initiative frames burnout as a measurable safety risk, arguing that early recognition can prevent accidents and improve productivity. Clayco’s internal survey, conducted in 2025, found that more than one‑third of craft workers missed work due to mental‑health concerns, underscoring the scale of the issue. Company executives describe the effort as a business imperative, integrating psychological safety, education, and awareness into field culture.
New York’s Scaffold Law Is Breaking the System It Was Meant to Protect
The New York Scaffold Law, enacted in 1885, imposes absolute liability on owners and contractors for any gravity‑related injury, regardless of fault. This unique liability regime has driven insurance premiums sky‑high, forced carriers out of the market, and caused contractors to...
Halmar, Skanska Advance Penn Station Rebuild as Delivery Phase Begins
Halmar and Skanska have been chosen by the U.S. Department of Transportation and Amtrak to lead the Penn Station reconstruction through a new joint venture called Penn Transformation Partners. The venture will tackle active‑rail construction, convert the existing concourse to...
Clayco Partners With Deep Atomic for DOE Nuclear-Powered Data Center Proposal
Clayco has created a new unit, Clayco Compute, to pursue advanced‑technology projects, including a quantum‑computing campus in Chicago. The firm joined a consortium led by Deep Atomic to submit a U.S. Energy Department proposal for the nation’s first nuclear‑powered data...
Top 400 Contractors Hit Craft Ceiling as AI Boom Strains Skilled Labor Resources
Top 400 contractors posted an 11.8% revenue jump to $671.4 billion in 2025, driven by a surge in data‑center builds tied to the AI boom. Turner Construction led the pack, posting a 40% revenue increase to $29.2 billion and a $44.3 billion project...
Investors Back US Renewable Energy Projects But Want Market Uncertainties Fixed
The American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE) projects $120 billion in U.S. renewable‑energy investment for 2026, potentially adding a record 62 GW of new capacity. Solar and battery storage are expected to attract the bulk of capital, with $53 billion and $22 billion respectively,...
Power Giants NextEra Energy and Dominion Energy Eye $67B Link
NextEra Energy announced a stock‑heavy acquisition of Dominion Energy valued at roughly $67 billion, forming the largest U.S. electricity producer. The combined company will serve about 10 million customers and own a portfolio of megaprojects across the East Coast. Post‑deal market capitalization...
At Last, New Mass Transit Line Emerges in Maryland
The Maryland Purple Line, a $9 billion, 16.2‑mile light‑rail project, is entering its final construction phase after a series of lawsuits and a 2021 rebid. The 21‑station line will connect Bethesda, Silver Spring, College Park and New Carrollton, linking to multiple Washington Metro,...
Jacobs Expands EPCM Role With Hut 8's 1-GW Texas AI Campus
Jacobs has been awarded a sole‑source engineering, procurement and construction management (EPMC) contract to build Hut 8’s 1‑gigawatt Beacon Point AI data‑center campus in Nueces County, Texas. The deal expands a partnership that began earlier this year when Jacobs served as...
India Aviation Infrastructure Plans Skyrocket
India is committing up to $40 billion to overhaul its aviation infrastructure through 2040, expanding the airport network from 149 to more than 200 sites and tripling its commercial fleet. The next four years feature an $18‑24 billion airport procurement pipeline that...
Grid Operator PJM Interconnection Aims Changes to Speed New Capacity Adds
PJM Interconnection, the United States’ largest grid operator, announced a revamped interconnection review process to speed the addition of new generating capacity. The updated queue contains 811 projects totaling 220 GW, spanning coal, natural gas, nuclear, hydro, battery storage and renewables....
Dali Operator Faces Federal Charges in Key Bridge Incident
The State of Maryland finalized a $2.25 billion settlement with the owner and operator of the M/V Dali, the container ship that struck the Francis Scott Key Bridge on March 26, 2024. Federal prosecutors have indicted two Synergy Marine subsidiaries and the vessel’s technical...
Gas Tax Holiday Push Collides With Highway Trust Fund Fears
Congress is weighing a bipartisan proposal to suspend the federal gasoline tax as pump prices climb to $4.55 per gallon, a $1.40 increase from a year ago. The move is framed as a short‑term relief for motorists amid rising costs...
Ireland Splits $18B MetroLink Procurement Into Separate Civil, Rail Systems Packages
Ireland has opened procurement for its long‑delayed MetroLink project, a fully automated metro system valued at roughly $18 billion. The government is issuing three separate contracts that isolate tunneling and heavy civil works from rail‑systems integration and long‑term operations. This segmented...
Western Kentucky U., With Gilbane, Launches $350M Residential Housing Transformation
Western Kentucky University has launched the $350 million "Elevate WKU" public‑private partnership with Gilbane and construction firm Broeren Russo Builders. The initiative will replace aging dormitories with a new 1,000‑bed residence hall and a modern dining facility, designed by Mackey Mitchell...
ENR West 2026 Northwest Design Firm of the Year: PAE Consulting Engineers
ENR West has named PAE Consulting Engineers the 2026 Northwest Design Firm of the Year for the West Region. The Portland‑based firm posted nearly $70 million in 2025 West Coast revenue, with two‑thirds generated in the Pacific Northwest, and recorded its...
ITER Magnet Milestone Tests Fusion’s Construction Supply Chain
The U.S. ITER program, managed from Oak Ridge National Laboratory, has shipped the final components of the central solenoid magnet system to the ITER fusion reactor in Cadarache, France. This completes the American contribution to one of ITER’s most complex...
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STV Chief Announces Plan to Launch Power Business Line
STV announced the launch of a new power‑focused business line aimed at addressing the soaring energy requirements of U.S. data‑center construction. The move responds to McKinsey’s projection that global data‑center investment could reach $6.7 trillion by 2030, driven largely by AI‑heavy...
Feds Propose Framework to Push Nuclear Microreactor Deployment
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has issued a proposed Part 57 rule that creates a streamlined licensing framework for nuclear microreactors of 100 MWe or less. Published May 1 in the Federal Register, the rule promises to cut permitting and licensing time to...
Dubai Launches Tunnel Boring on $5.6B Blue Line Metro Expansion
Dubai’s $5.6 billion Blue Line metro expansion entered the tunnel‑boring phase on May 3, launching a 15.5‑km underground stretch that will serve nine previously unconnected districts. The MAPA‑Limak‑CRRC consortium leads the 30‑km project, which includes 14 new stations and an elevated crossing....
Research Illuminates Pollution Problem in Tijuana River Valley
The Tijuana River watershed has delivered an unprecedented 31 billion gallons of raw sewage into the United States since October 2023, sparking a binational environmental crisis. In response, the U.S. International Boundary and Water Commission awarded a design‑build contract to Stantec and...
Turner Tapped to Build $500M Westcourt Orlando Mixed-Use District
Turner Construction Co. has been awarded the general‑contractor role for Westcourt Orlando, a $500 million mixed‑use development adjacent to the Kia Center in downtown Orlando. The 900,000‑sq‑ft, 8.5‑acre project will combine a hotel, residential units, office space, retail, a performance venue...
Flatiron Said Disputed Concrete Mix Cost Millions on Large Caltrans Project
Flatiron Dragados West, the design‑build contractor for Caltrans’ $511 million Fix 50 highway project, faced a costly concrete dispute after a viaduct segment failed to meet design strength. The contractor had to demolish and rebuild the affected portion, prompting a multi‑million‑dollar claim...
Ontario's $9.8B Transmission Plan Targets Toronto Grid Bottleneck
Ontario’s Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) is drafting a $9.8 billion transmission plan to address a looming grid bottleneck in the Greater Toronto Area. Peak demand could rise from today’s 23‑24 GW to as high as 40 GW by 2050, driven by electrification...
Shell Nears Launch of Estimated $1.17B Holland Green Hydrogen Project
Shell is preparing to launch Holland Hydrogen 1, a 200‑MW green hydrogen plant on the Maasvlakte 2 site in Rotterdam, slated to become Europe’s largest renewable hydrogen facility. The $1.17 billion project can produce 60,000 kg of hydrogen per day and is already linked...
Construction’s Next Chapter: Challenges, Demand and Opportunity
The U.S. construction sector is navigating a transitional 2026 marked by higher material prices, persistent labor shortages, and uncertain Federal Reserve interest‑rate policy. While these headwinds squeeze subcontractor margins, demand remains robust, especially for data‑center builds, modular projects and AI‑driven...
Milwaukee’s Project Pipeline Remains Strong
Milwaukee’s architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) sector is experiencing a robust pipeline of projects, driven by public and private investment in airport expansion, transportation corridors, health‑care facilities and cultural institutions. Major undertakings include the Concourse E redevelopment at Mitchell International Airport,...
VIEWPOINT: Don't Write Off Hospitality: The Hotel Market Is Sending Contractors a Clear Signal
Despite industry chatter that hotel construction is cooling, contractor Craig Plescia reports a thriving pipeline. From 2021‑2025, hospitality bid invitations rose steadily, and Q2 2024 reached a record 6,095 projects covering 713,151 rooms, a 9% year‑over‑year increase. Strong domestic air travel—119 million...
DOT's Record $774M Port Funding Round Could Mark Peak Before IIJA Expires
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration announced a record $774 million allocation for port infrastructure projects across the nation on April 28. Funding will support marine structures, rail links, container yards, and cargo‑handling systems, including a $59.6 million grant for new ship‑to‑shore...
Kiewit Dropped From Key Bridge Rebuild in Baltimore
The Maryland Transportation Authority (MDTA) has removed Kiewit Infrastructure Co. from the second phase of the Francis Scott Key Bridge rebuild after the contractor’s price and schedule were deemed unacceptable. Kiewet had completed about 70% of the design, but projected...
Last Call for Submissions: ENR Mountain States & Southwest's Top Design Firms Surveys and Preview List
ENR’s Mountain States & Southwest region is finalizing its annual Top Design Firms rankings, with the survey deadline now extended to May 11. So far, 75 firms have submitted data, and the June 22 issue will rank firms by 2025 revenue across...
Report: Billions of Dollars in Data Center Construction Risk Is Uninsured
Annual data‑center investment is set to exceed $300 billion by 2027, pushing individual campus values to $10‑$30 billion. Insurers can no longer provide full replacement coverage; instead they underwrite based on probable maximum loss, limiting policies to $1.5‑$3.5 billion for most projects. This...
Boston Considers Tapping Waterways for Clean Thermal Energy
Boston’s Green Ribbon Commission, backed by a $500,000 grant from the Mass Clean Energy Center and the city, is launching the Boston Thermal Energy Network (BosTEN) pilot. The project will assess using closed-loop thermal energy extraction from the Charles and...
Contractor Barton Malow Selected to Build $198 Million Soccer Stadium for Beloved Detroit Team
Barton Malow has been awarded a $198 million contract to build AlumniFi Field, a new 15,000‑seat stadium for Detroit City FC. The venue will more than double the club’s current 7,200‑seat capacity and includes a 421‑space parking deck, roughly 16,000 sq ft of commercial space,...
Barton Malow Chief Reveals ‘Big Change’ Behind 100-Year-Old Company’s Longevity
Barton Malow President and CEO Ryan Maibach attributes the firm’s century‑long durability to a decisive leadership change in 2011 that forced the Southfield‑based contractor to innovate. The abrupt transition, described on ENR’s Groundbreakers podcast, pushed the company to reassess decision‑making and...
$2.5B Oman–UAE Hafeet Rail Project Enters Heavy Civil Phase
The $2.5 billion Hafeet Rail, the first cross‑border railway linking Oman and the United Arab Emirates, has entered its heavy‑civil phase. At 40 % overall completion, crews have moved more than 27 million cubic metres of earth and begun tunneling through the Hajar...
Colorado River States Clear Emergency Water Transfer as System Nears Hydropower Floor
The Upper Basin states have cleared an emergency water transfer to Lake Powell, enabling the Interior Department to authorize releases as early as Friday. The plan, developed under the 2019 Drought Response Operating Agreements, calls for moving between 660,000 and...
Gulf War Damage Creates $58B Repair Job, Global Construction Squeeze
The U.S., Israel and Iran conflict has left more than 80 oil and gas facilities in the Persian Gulf severely damaged, creating a $58 billion repair and restoration market, according to Rystad Energy. Downstream refining and petrochemical complexes bear the bulk...
Trump Taps Defense Production Act to Address Grid Equipment, Energy Project Bottlenecks
President Donald Trump has invoked the Defense Production Act to accelerate production of critical energy‑infrastructure components, including transformers, substations, pipelines and LNG systems. The White House published the determinations in the Federal Register, authorizing the Department of Energy to apply...
San Antonio Military Base Weighs Nuclear Option for Grid Independence
Joint Base San Antonio‑Randolph is slated to host a prototype nuclear microreactor, marking the first commercial atomic power installation in Texas. The Department of the Air Force and the Defense Innovation Unit chose Antares Energy to propose its R1 microreactor...
Industrial Leads for the Week of April 27, 2026
Invenergy LLC is evaluating up to three natural‑gas‑fired power plants in Arizona, valued between $1 billion and $2 billion, while also planning a simple‑cycle peaking plant in Wisconsin and two in Texas. Element Six announced a $600 million synthetic‑diamond‑grit facility in Georgia to...
Design Conflicts Emerge for $1B Lakeforest Redevelopment in Maryland
The former Lakeforest Mall in Gaithersburg, Maryland is slated for a more than $1 billion mixed‑use redevelopment covering roughly 100 acres. Early infrastructure plans reveal design conflicts among stormwater management, roadway geometry, and transit coordination. The project involves relocating an 84‑inch...
ENR 2026 Top 500 Design Firms: AI Boom Buoys Design Revenue
The ENR 2026 Top 500 Design Firms report shows a 7.4% revenue jump to $158.7 billion, driven by an anticipated $1.75 trillion AI‑related infrastructure spend through 2027. Jacobs surged ahead, posting a 62.2% rise in its data‑center business and a 500% expansion of...
Historic Seattle Building Becomes a Contender
The 1914 timber‑built Ship Supply Building at Seattle’s Fisherman’s Terminal has been transformed into the Maritime Innovation Center. The Port of Seattle collaborated with Miller Hull Partnership and Forma Construction to restore the historic envelope while installing a new seismic concrete‑and‑rebar...
St. Luke's Boise Health System Invests in Downtown Campus
St. Luke’s Boise Health System announced a $1.2 billion expansion of its flagship hospital, adding a new patient tower, additional operating rooms, and expanded medical‑office and clinic space. The project, centered on the historic downtown campus, aims to accommodate a growing patient...
DOT Restores Second Avenue Subway Funding Under Court’s Watch
The U.S. Department of Transportation announced on April 16 that it has completed its review of the $7.7 billion Phase 2 of New York’s Second Avenue Subway and is restoring the federal funding that had been frozen. The move allows the Metropolitan...
EPA Highlights Plan to Push for Greater Water Reuse by Utilities, Energy Sector
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency unveiled Water Reuse Action Plan 2.0, a voluntary framework aimed at curbing the rising water demand from AI‑driven data centers. The plan builds on a 2020 initiative and seeks to foster partnerships between water utilities, energy‑intensive...
Worker Death Prompts OSHA Safety Probe on Texas ICE Megaproject
A fatal forklift accident on July 21, 2025 killed Base International worker Hector Gonzalez while constructing the $1.3 billion ICE detention complex at Fort Bliss, Texas. The incident triggered an unresolved OSHA citation that could proceed to a formal hearing if...
Why Formal Training Matters for Construction Superintendents
Construction firms are turning to formal leadership training and certification to elevate superintendents, a move shown to boost productivity, safety, and client relations. Studies reveal 74 % of workers feel under‑developed, while 77 % of large projects suffer delays, underscoring the need...
Maine Moves to Pause Data Centers Before Demand Arrives
Maine lawmakers approved the nation’s first statewide moratorium on large data centers, banning permits for facilities of 20 MW or more until November 1 2027. The pause is enforced while a newly formed Maine Data Center Coordination Council evaluates the projects’ impact on...