On September 8, 2022, a groundbreaking ceremony was held at New York City's John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) to kickoff the first phase of a $9.5-billion construction project at the airport (see renderings in full article). In cooperation with a consortium of private financial sponsors ("New Terminal One"), the Port Authority of NY & NJ announced the start of construction on a new, state-of-the-art, 2.4-million-sf international terminal which will be located on the south side of JFK. The project is expected to create 10,000 jobs, including 6,000 jobs in construction. The new Terminal One will reportedly be more than twice the size of JKF's current Terminal 1 and Terminal 2 combined...
If you have visited the greater Boston area in the past two years, you most likely noticed one or more major construction projects underway or at least spotted some giant cranes looming in the distance. The city currently has many large construction projects underway, including major projects in the commercial, residential, educational, R&D, and public housing areas. The city's diverse economy is driving the need for new commercial space, particularly in the areas of biotech/life sciences, consulting, and technology. As a well-established center for higher education and a leading destination for young professionals seeking career opportunities in growing industries, the demand for residential space has also been growing fast. Click below for full article and project photos...
The Construction Financial Management Association (CMFA) 22nd Annual Mid-Atlantic Regional Conference was held September 24-26, 2022 in Cambridge, MD. This year, Beacon Vice President Kieran O'Connor was a speaker at the event, participating as part of a panel of Surety industry professionals. The panel members focused on all of the following areas: (1) Trends in Surety results Mid-Atlantic & Nationwide; (2) Outlook for Underwriting and performance and losses of Surety and Subcontractor Default Industries; and (3) Legal or claim trends.
Looking at the topic from the Construction Consultant's perspective, Kieran's portion of the presentation covered current trends in the U.S. Construction Industry, Surety Claims trends, and Solutions to current challenges...
By John Yeung, Vice President, Beacon Consulting Group. Beacon's New York City office is a short walk from Penn Station, the busiest railway station in North America. More than 640,000 subway, commuter rail, and Amtrak passengers pass through the station on an average weekday. The station is a terminal for trains run by Amtrak (which owns the station), Long Island Railroad, NJ Transit, and the New York City Transit Authority (MTA), with more than 1300 arrivals and departures on weekdays. Because the station is nearly 60 years old and serves twice the number of daily trains (and passengers) as it did in 1970, Penn Station's underground areas can often feel over-crowded, dark/dreary, and very out-dated...
Bio concrete is a self-healing concrete designed to repair its own cracks. It was invented by a Dutch researcher, Hendrik Jonkers, at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands. Bio concrete is concrete with the addition of limestone producing bacteria utilizing a biochemical process called Microbially Induced Calcium Carbonate Precipitation (MICP). This article, written by Beacon Project Manager Myat Cyn, provides a great overview and introduction to this new technology...
Earlier this year, Mutual of Omaha and the Mayor of Omaha announced plans for a new $433-million skyscraper to be built in downtown Omaha. Although the project must still be formally approved by the Omaha City Council, many details about the project have been released by the city and Mutual of Omaha. The proposed tower (known as "Project Beacon") would be between 40 and 50 stories tall, up to 650 feet in height, with 800,000 square feet of office space and 2200 parking spaces. Depending on the final approved design, the tower could end up being the city's tallest building...
Beacon's team has consulted on some of the largest and most complex construction projects in the U.S. in recent years. However, our team also keeps abreast of other notable construction projects announced or underway. Beacon's Jim Bruno has compiled this summary of several interesting, large-scale projects planned and/or started in the U.S.
Happy Veterans Day! Today is one of those National Holidays which really doesn't get the attention it deserves. Even though many of us are working today, it's important to stop, reflect and thank all of the Military Veterans out there (as well as our active duty members of the armed forces) who have fought for the freedom we all enjoy in the U.S...
Beacon's President Dennis O'Neill was recently the featured speaker on the podcast "Surety Today" hosted by Michael Stover, a partner at the law firm of Wright, Constable & Skeen LLP. The episode, which lasts about 45 minutes, focuses on various new technologies and software used in the construction industry. Dennis started off the interview by providing some interesting facts and figures about the current state of the construction industry in the U.S. He then transitioned into the how the construction industry is now using advanced project management software, remote site monitoring, drones, and other technologies. In the podcast, Dennis also talks about some of the impacts of Covid-19 on the industry and how technology is being used in response...
Well, the World Series is over (congratulations Dodger fans), Covid-19 is boomeranging, and the Presidential Election is upon us. What a year...it seems to be lasting forever! On the bright side, in the construction industry we are seeing some positive news in recent weeks as some large construction projects continue to make progress and plans for some very large new projects are being announced. Let’s hope we will see a good resurgence in the economy and many new project announcements over the next year. This month, we profile a very interesting assignment which Beacon has been consulting on: The Catskill Aqueduct Repair & Rehabilitation Project. We have been providing construction consulting services to a leading Surety related to part of this project, which is a major rehabilitation project of a 104-year-old, 74-mile-long, water-supply aqueduct running from the Catskill Mountains to just north of New York City. Our team has consulted on many critical infrastructure projects over the years, but this is an important one because the aqueduct provides almost half of New York City’s water (more than 8.3 million people count on that aqueduct working right)...
