Pacific Builder and Engineer articles from August 2006

Pacific Builder and Engineer archives from August 2006

Contract Awards Summary.
August 7, 2006... Staff How To Use the Contract Awards Summary: All numbers and charts are in real dollars. The chart immediately below tracks cumulative awards for all categories of construction in PB&E 's five-state area. The last two years are shown...

Interstate System Turns 50.
August 7, 2006... Story by Carl Molesworth Spokane Project on I-90 Shows How Work Has Changed When President Dwight D. Eisenhower put pen to paper on June 29, 1956, and signed the Federal-Aid Highway Act, he not only was establishing the Interstate...

Spokane's Downtown Comes Back.
August 7, 2006... Story by Carl Molesworth Construction Crews Working on a Variety of Building Projects A chain link fence bounds three sides of a vacant lot in downtown Spokane. The lot has been cleared, but chunks of broken bricks and concrete litter...

Two-Way Data Flow.
August 7, 2006... Staff The "Connected Construction Site" Coming Soon to the Northwest If you think about it, information has become the grease that lubricates the wheels of a construction project. When a design change is made to a site plan or a...

Big Project Ahead in the Cascades.(Brief article)
August 7, 2006... Staff Snoqualmie Pass, Wash.-- Engineers for the Washington State Department of Transportation have announced the preferred alternative for improving a 15-mile stretch of Interstate 90 through the Cascade Mountains between Hyak and Easton....

Briefs.
August 7, 2006... Staff Seattle -- Gary Smith is the new general manager of contractor Lease Crutcher Lewis's Seattle office. In his new position, Smith is responsible for all LCL operations in the Seattle-Tacoma area. He has 30 years of construction...

Court Clears Up Wetlands Issue.(United States Supreme Court)
August 7, 2006... Compiled by Carl Molesworth The United States Supreme Court ruled in June that that the Clean Water Act does not apply to all wetlands, ditches and the like, however remote and intermittent they may be. In the cases Rapanos v. United...

Transportation Secretary Steps Down.
August 7, 2006... Compiled by Carl Molesworth Citing a desire "to move on to other challenges," U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta resigned his position effective July 7. He was one of the last three remaining initial Bush...

Health Plan Bill Comes Up Short.
August 7, 2006... Compiled by Carl Molesworth In an effort to focus on the plight of health care for Americans, the Senate dedicated a full week in May to consideration of health care legislation. High on the agenda was Health Education, Labor and Pensions...

Estate Tax.
August 7, 2006... Compiled by Carl Molesworth The Senate also failed to pass a procedural vote to allow debate on full repeal of the federal estate tax. The federal estate tax was slowly phased out as part of The Economic Growth and Tax Relief...

Alaska Satellite Service Enhanced.
August 7, 2006... Staff Milpitas, Calif.-- Globalstar Inc., a provider of mobile satellite voice and data services to business, announced that its sixth North American satellite ground station, or gateway, went into operation on June 21, more than one week...

3-D Laser Scanner.
August 7, 2006... Staff Norcross, Ga.-- Leica Geosystems announced the introduction of the first 3-D laser scanner with four critical total station features, offering easier operation, increased field and office productivity, and greater flexibility for...

Long-Range Laser.
August 7, 2006... Staff Livermore, Calif.-- A new long-range, dual-slope laser suited for large job sites and agricultural land-leveling has been announced by Topcon Positioning Systems. The RT-5SW retains all of the primary benefits of the RT-5S series...

Trenchless Assessment Guide.(Brief article)
August 7, 2006... Staff Arlington, Va.-- The National Utility Contractors Association has released its new Trenchless Assessment Guide, a time-saving, easy-to-use interactive software designed to help utility engineers and designers evaluate the trenchless...

Emerick Forms Special Projects Group.
August 7, 2006... Staff Portland-- Emerick Construction recently created a new Special Projects Group. Led by project manager Corey Lohman, LEED AP, the division was formed to provide the widest construction services possible to Emerick clients,...

AGC Members Honored for Safety Records.(DIX Corp.)(Garco Construction Co.)(Frank Gurney Inc.)(Brief article)
August 7, 2006... Staff Spokane-- The Inland Northwest chapter of Associated General Contractors honored its 2006 National AGC Safety Award Winner at a dinner June 28 at the Spokane Club. Recognized for zero accidents were the following companies: Dix...

STEP Recipients Recognized.
August 7, 2006... Staff Tigard, Ore.-- The Pacific Northwest Chapter of Associated Builders and Contractors recently recognized 14 of its members for outstanding safety efforts through ABC's Safety Training & Evaluation Program. STEP recognizes the...

ABC Members Earn Workers' Comp Refund.
August 7, 2006... Staff Bellevue, Wash.-- Associated Builders and Contractors of Western Washington's Retro program earned more than $11.45 million in workers' compensation premium refunds for the 335 members who participated in the ABC Retro Program for...

NUCA Chapter Wins Teamwork Award.(National Utility Contractors Association of Oregon and Southwest Washington)(Brief article)
August 7, 2006... Staff Clackamas, Ore.-- The National Utility Contractors Association's Political Action Committee recently presented its annual Teamwork Award to NUCA of Oregon and Southwest Washington. Each year, NUCA/PAC honors chapters and...

Program Helps Students Prepare for Careers.(Brief article)
August 7, 2006... Staff Bozeman, Mont.-- Hard Dollar, a provider of integrated project lifecycle management solutions, has teamed up with Montana State University and 11 other schools to help address the construction industry's growing demand for qualified...

Sims Proposes Major Levee Repairs.
August 7, 2006... Staff Seattle-- An aging levee system protecting thousands of lives, billions of dollars in economic infrastructure and transportation corridors would get much-needed fixes under a new county-wide plan proposed by King County (Wash.)...

Weather Enclosure Fabrication Contract Awarded.(American Space-frame Fabricators LLC)(Brief article)
August 7, 2006... Staff Hanford, Wash.-- American Space-frame Fabricators LLC has been awarded a contract by Fluor Hanford to fabricate a weather enclosure for the transuranic (TRU) Waste Retrieval Project at the U.S. Department of Energy's Hanford Site....

Editor's Report.
August 21, 2006... By Carl Molesworth Earlier this summer, I got a chance to take a short flight in a World War II-vintage B-17 bomber. The plane, operated by the Collings Foundation, goes around the country in the summer with a B-24 sister ship, selling...

Wild Horse Wind Power Project.
August 21, 2006... Story by Carl Molesworth Puget Sound Energy Catches the Wind to Diversify Its Resources On the wind-swept ridges of Whiskey Dick Mountain, about 15 miles east of Ellenburg, Wash., a revolution is taking place. It's the same movement...

Starting Small.
August 21, 2006... By Ryan Johnson Idaho Contractor Builds Business with Compact Equipment One of the many benefits of compact equipment is the ability to purchase a skid-steer loader, a few attachments and become your own boss -- to start a business on...

PB&E Adds Contractor Weather.
August 21, 2006... Staff Norcross, Ga.-- Associated Construction Publications has added a feature to the Pacific Builder & Engineer website that will help contractors to get their days off to a good start. ACP Contractor Weather Channel provides...

People.
August 21, 2006... Staff Tukwila, Wash.-- N C Machinery recently announced a series of personnel changes at branches in Washington and Alaska. Rick Norman is the new product support manager for Alaska, based in the Anchorage branch. A native of Ohio,...

CITC Graduates in High Demand.
August 21, 2006... Staff Bellevue, Wash.-- The Construction Industry Training Council held graduation ceremonies for 50 students at the Meydenbauer Center on June 16. Eighteen of the graduates earned their State Apprenticeship Completions in carpentry,...

Joint Design-Build Program Set.(Design-Build Institute of America )(Brief article)
August 21, 2006... Staff Seattle-- The Northwest Chapter of the Design-Build Institute of America and AIA Seattle will present a joint full-day program entitled, "Design a Team... then Build a Design," on Sept. 22 at the South Campus Center at the...

ConnectOregon Projects Approved.(Brief article)
August 21, 2006... Staff Salem, Ore.-- The Oregon Transportation Commission has approved the recommended list of projects for funding from the ConnectOregon program, the $100-million initiative passed by the 2005 Legislature. Some 43 projects were...

Hotel Expansion Makes Good Time.
August 21, 2006... Staff Seattle-- Skanska USA Building Inc. recently completed the first phase of the downtown Seattle Sheraton Hotel expansion. The ballroom phase was completed in time for a citywide convention that drew 5,000 attendees, the first...

Railroad Needed To Access Coal Deposits.
August 21, 2006... Staff Helena, Mont.-- If the massive Otter Creek coal deposits in southeast Montana are to be mined, a lot of pieces must fall into place first, the head of the nation's largest private owner of coal reserves told the state Land Board last...

NWCCC Calls For Contest Entries.
August 21, 2006... Staff Seattle-- The Northwest Construction Consumer Council has issued a call for entries in the NWCCC 2006 Distinguished Project Awards competition. Projects will be recognized in four categories: Private Projects Under $10 million;...

Shoring Completed for Office Building.
August 21, 2006... Staff Seattle-- DBM Contactors Inc. has completed the shoring for Vulcan's Terry & Westlake Office Building. The design-build excavation support project included coordination of demolition of the existing Trick and Murray building,...

Briefs.
August 21, 2006... Staff Mercer Island, Wash. -- Express Construction has hired Donald Sheppard and Ryan Wright as superintendents. Sheppard, in the shell and core division, is currently working on a 29,000-square-foot office building in Seattle. He has...