Industry News Briefs
June 5, 2008 Headlines
U.S. Continues to Lead the World in Wind Power Growth
Airports Fast-Track Rail Projects
Power Plant Construction Costs Expected to Escalate
Mounting Costs Put Clean Coal on Back Burner
Construction Cameras Track Project Progress
Industry News
U.S. Continues to Lead the World in Wind Power Growth
U.S. Department of Energy (05/29/08)
A recent report by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) reveals that U.S. wind power capacity rose 46 percent in 2007 and that $9 billion was invested in U.S. wind plants last year. These figures position the United States as the fastest-growing wind power market in the world, something it has been for three years in a row. Wind is also contributing heavily to the U.S. power mix, accounting for 35 percent of the country's new total electric generating capacity last year. "Another record-breaking year of the United States installing more wind generating capacity than any other nation is indicative of the President's durable, pro-growth energy policy. With DOE's support, wind power is one of the most important, emissions-free sources of energy being deployed to address climate change and improve our energy security," says DOE Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Andy Karsner. The report also found that as the wind power market grows, more major foreign wind turbine manufacturers are investing in the United States. Several launched or announced new U.S. wind turbine manufacturing facilities last year. These new plants could provide over 4,700 jobs.
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Airports Fast-Track Rail Projects
USA Today (05/29/08) Frank, Thomas
Many airports in the United States are aiming to ease traffic congestion and reduce pollution by constructing new rail systems as an alternative to driving, with transit agencies in at least 12 U.S. cities planning or building rail lines that would link airports to downtown areas. "What's really driving this is roadway congestion, the inability to add lanes and to add roads," says Dick Marchi of Airports Council International-North America. "High gas prices are a sweetener that makes rail more acceptable to the public." Many areas now considering rail service to airports are experiencing huge growth in the suburbs surrounding airports, which makes building rail lines more practical. Denver's Regional Transportation District expects that travelers will be able to make the trip from downtown Denver to the city airport in about 38 minutes via a proposed 24-mile light-rail line. On the other hand, a February report by the Sacramento Regional Transit District indicates that the impact of a proposed 13-mile city-to-airport rail line would be minimal in terms of reducing air pollution, while travel time would be slightly longer than by car, given the airport's location near an interstate highway and the "relatively light" degree of congestion, according to transit district general manager Mike Wiley. He adds, however, that people will opt for rail transit because the line will boast frequent and reliable service and will take travelers directly to the terminal. Some transit officials say it is critical that trains drop people off at an airport terminal instead of at a shuttle several miles away. "If you can't expand the roads, you have to look at high-occupancy ways to get people into the terminal and out," says Jane Morris, assistant aviation director of the Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix, Ariz.
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Power Plant Construction Costs Expected to Escalate
ENR (05/27/08) Peters, Mark
Cambridge Energy Research Associates (CERA) says construction costs for new power plants have doubled over the last eight years. According to the energy consultancy and its parent company, IHS, the cost of new power plant construction has risen 130 percent since 2000. The IHS CERA Power Capital Costs Index shows that plants built for $1 billion in 2000 today costs $2.31 billion to erect. CERA analysts say the trend is likely to continue due to rising prices for commodities such as steel, copper, and nickel, as well as the weakening U.S. dollar, which is driving the cost of purchasing equipment and materials for new plants. "The fundamentals that have driven costs upward for the past eight years--supply constraints, increasing wages and rising materials costs-remain in place and will continue during 2008," says CERA's senior director of cost and technology Candida Scott.
Mounting Costs Put Clean Coal on Back Burner
New York Times (05/30/08) P. A1; Wald, Matthew L.
The concept of clean coal, or power plants that combust coal while removing carbon dioxide (CO2), is widely supported by the government, utilities, and coal companies. But recent developments are hurting the effort, including the government's cancellation of the FutureGen project in January 2008. In the past few months, projects planned by utilities in Florida, West Virginia, Ohio, Minnesota, and Washington State to capture CO2 have been abandoned or face regulatory uncertainty. Some experts predict that to avert global warming, it will be necessary to sequester and store CO2 underground by 2020, assuming that coal will continue to be combusted by power plants. The Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) recently forecasted that it could take as long as 15 years to launch a pilot clean coal plant and to prove that the technology works. EPRI has set a target of completing large-scale tests by 2020. Meanwhile, the Energy Department is proposing to offer subsidies to a utility that is already planning a new power plant. The tacitly would use the subsidies to add a clean coal segment to the plant but would bear most of the risk of cost overruns. Duke Energy is currently planning a coal gasification power plant in Edwardsport, Ind., and engineers in Wisconsin plan to test CO2-capture equipment on conventional coal-fired power plants.
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Construction Cameras Track Project Progress
Construction News (05/19/08) Robertson, Vicki
When Parkway Properties of Jackson, Miss., and builder Harrell Contracting Group (HCG) began building The Pinnacle at Jackson Place in downtown Jackson, Miss., they decided they wanted to install a construction camera to track and record construction on the nine-story high-rise office building. The cameras could keep workers up-to-date on the progress of the building, as well as inform future tenants about how the building was coming along. Dale and Associates Architects, involved in constructing the Jackson Convention Complex, also liked this idea and pushed the Convention Center Commission to put a camera at the complex. The iBEAM OnSite live construction camera from iBEAM Systems was eventually selected for both projects. It allows viewers to watch live action at the construction site 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Using a remote control, viewers can pan and zoom into different areas. The camera is further equipped with automatic day/night mode and an all-weather enclosure so that it can operate in bad weather. The camera also snaps high-quality pictures of construction every 15 minutes and automatically uploads them to iBEAM's Image Archive, where users can track a project's progress from beginning to end. Monthly and end-of-project movies are also available in iBEAM OnSite Hosting services. They show all the work completed in one month in an easy-to-watch format, helping companies determine where progress has been made and what needs improved. "These time-lapse movies have shown potential clients specific examples of our approach to fast track construction and the steps we take to ensure project schedule compliance, a critical element for financial success of a project for building owners," says Don Roberts, vice president of HCG.
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North American Grassroot Industrial Plant Construction Explodes to $181 Billion in 2008
Industrial Info Resources (05/27/08)
The total investment of grassroot industrial plants under construction in North America this year is valued at more than $181 billion, signifying that this type of construction is growing. Grassroot plants refer to plants being constructed from the ground up with no previous site improvements. Out of the grassroot industrial plants currently under construction, 881, or 71 percent, are being built in the United States, accounting for $129 billion of the total. In Canada, 150 grassroot plants are being built, representing over $51 billion. In the United States, Texas is the leading state with 95 grassroot plants currently in the construction process, representing $20 billion. Between 2006 and 2007, grassroot industrial plant construction in the United States increased from $60 billion to $88 billion.
Control Contamination During Health Care Facility Construction
Indoor Environment Connections (05/01/08) Vol. 9, No. 7, P. 33; Rosenthal, Jim
The control of particles and contaminants in medical facilities during construction activities depends greatly on proper filtration and air pressure differentials. In scenarios where a facility is in close proximity to construction or demolition activity, it is advised that all pre-filters and all standard filters employed in non-critical areas be changed prior to the commencement of construction to keep disruption to a minimum, while all filters require regular checking during construction since they will be susceptible to faster contamination; the urge to use less efficient filters should be resisted, while filters ought to be replaced when they are loaded. The best preventative measure against contamination from the construction site is positive differential pressure, so the dampers on outside air intakes should be open constantly to maintain sufficient pressure. In situations where a new medical facility is being built, the return air openings should be covered with filtration media or pleated filters once they have been cut, and these filters should be changed often because they accrue dust rapidly. The presence of high air velocities at these openings usually calls for the installation of a temporary filter rack with a support grid to maintain the position of the filter and prevent bowing, and activation of the HVAC system should be preceded by the installation of construction filters in the holding frames or modular track framing systems. Care must be taken to guarantee that filter banks have the appropriate spacers, seals, and gaskets to supply an airtight fit and prevent filter bypass. The control of contaminants in a medical facility that is operating while it is under construction or reconstruction is a tougher challenge than the other two scenarios, and the University of Minnesota's Andrew J. Streifel stresses the importance of communication between all stakeholders, including personnel, medical practitioners, engineers, architects, and contractors. He recommends the use of the Infection Control Risk Assessment Matrix of Precautions for Construction & Renovation he helped develop for the American Hospital Association's American Society of Healthcare Engineering, which employs a decision-tree document outlining the types of construction and categorization of patient risk groups. The document supplies Classes of Precautions necessary for each project type, and differential pressure and filtration precautions are identical for Class III and Class IV construction projects; they involve sealing off the construction area, the removal or sealing off of the HVAC system to avoid contamination of the duct system, and the use of a negative air machine.
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