Research and Features

By Ramani Sundaram

April, 2012

A change can occur at any stage of a construction project. Although there can be many reasons, changes in construction projects are primarily due to three causes: design errors and omissions, change in field conditions or owner initiated changes.

By Steve Bernstein

March, 2012

Continuing economic hesitancy is forcing corporate America to take a closer look at its property portfolios. Few organizations can afford to carry excess property weight at this time.

By Carin Rautenbach

March, 2012

The new Terminal C at John Wayne Airport opened on November 14, as the centerpiece of a $543 million, five-year capital expansion and improvement program.

By Paul Alders

March, 2012

New York-Presbyterian Hospital (NYP) is one of the world’s most comprehensive university hospitals, with leading specialists in every field of medicine. The hospital’s success is enhanced by a clear plan for continually enhancing its facility and infrastructure.

By Adrian Smith

January, 2012

An ambitious solar energy project is coming to western Arizona. A 2,500 feet-tall tower will form the centerpiece of a non-polluting power plant. This will create large amounts of non-intermittent competitively priced green power.

By Dave McNamara

January, 2012

Energy savings and other more tangible benefits of green or high performance building have long been apparent in business.

By Tom Jaske

January, 2012

The National September 11 Memorial is New York City's newest landmark. A moving dedication ceremony was held for victims’ families on September 11, 2011, the 10-year anniversary of the attacks. Former U.S. President George W. Bush and President Barack Obama attended the commemoration ceremony.

By Tom Wiggins

October, 2011

This North American iteration of International Construction Intelligence presents data and intelligence about international costs and related trends for the construction industry. Our construction industry experts examine trends in carbon cap and trade, the performance of construction markets worldwide, and the impact of exchange rates on construction.

By Carin Rautenbach

September, 2011

High speed rail is on the agenda for many countries. The U.K. government is considering a new high speed rail (HSR) network (PDF), to transform the U.K.'s economic geography and provide a genuine alternative to air travel. Construction costs are estimated at $52billion.

By George Aucamp

September, 2011

When it comes to the successful execution of a capital project or portfolio of projects, visibility and control are vital. Leaders of corporations, institutions and government agencies are demanding clearer and more easily accessible information upon which to base their decisions.

By Ryan Brady

September, 2011

Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) have suffered in the U.K. but are attracting optimism in new emerging markets. The challenge is to develop a PPP approach to reflect local markets and conditions – ‘localizing’ is essential for future PPP projects.

By Tom Jaske

September, 2011

In October 2010, the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation board voted to approve an allocation of $100 million to develop the Performing Arts Center at the World Trade Center site.

By Mohamed El-Mehalawi

August, 2011

We recently presented a paper at the PMI College of Scheduling conference. Our paper ‘Lessons learned in engineering development for Major Projects’ examine the challenges faced by major projects during the front end and detailed engineering phases.

By Rashad Zein

August, 2011

We recently presented a paper at the June 2011 55th Annual Meeting of AACE International (the Association for the Advancement of Cost Engineering. Held in Anaheim, California, AACE International brought together more than 800 cost management professionals from more than 30 countries including the U.S. and Canada.

By Jack Wexler, PE

July, 2011

The hospitality sector is one of the most energy-intensive but the average U.S. hotelier is just beginning the sustainability journey. Rising energy costs are driving owner operators, as well as larger corporations, to actively seek energy efficiencies.

By Reza Amirkhalili

July, 2011

New legislation places NYC at the forefront of municipal efforts to improve energy efficiency in existing buildings. Local Law 84, the Energy Benchmarking law, is the one that everybody’s talking about right now.

By Daniel Leng

July, 2011

Asset-intensive owners are constantly seeking innovative ways of identifying efficiencies. Faithful+Gould’s Time on Tools® service is a standardized process that identifies the root cause of the barriers that prevent workforce crews from operating efficiently.

By Adam Shepherd

June, 2011

In the midst of national healthcare reform, the U.S. Military Health System is addressing its own unique challenges. The Department of Defense (DoD) has embarked on the biggest strategic implementation program of military hospital and clinic construction in recent history.

By Chris Baxter

March, 2011

Market changes and budgetary pressures are forcing organizations to re-examine their core business activities and support operations.

Maintaining an efficient working environment represents an enormous overhead. It also needs significant ongoing investment of managerial time and resource.

By Trevor Green

March, 2011

Renewable energy development in the U.S. has been motivated by a mix of federal- and state-level fiscal and regulatory policies.
Wind power is becoming a significant part of the diverse U.S. energy portfolio.

At state level, renewable energy standards (RES), also known as renewable portfolio standards, have become increasingly popular. Over 50% of states and the District of Columbia have an RES on the books. Another five states have renewable energy goals that are not mandatory.

By Reza Amirkhalili

December, 2010

The cost of U.S. corporate workspace continues to be closely scrutinized, as companies seek productive yet operationally cost-effective environments.

By Carin Rautenbach

December, 2010

Transport infrastructure projects continue to be strong performers in the U.S., U.K., Europe and the Middle East. As the financial squeeze continues, these projects remain attractive due to their long-term regenerative benefits.

By Tim Horner

August, 2010

Construction disputes rage on both sides of the pond – in England it’s all about adjudication, in the U.S. it’s all about liens. Here we take a brief look at some of the approaches and the differences.