Second Avenue Subway Phase 2 Breaks Ground on a $1.02B Tunneling Contract
The MTA breaks ground on Second Avenue Subway Phase 2, awarding a $1.02B tunneling contract to a Skanska/Traylor/Walsh JV to extend the Q train into East Harlem.
New California Laws Cap Retention and Reset Change Orders in 2026
A wave of California laws takes effect in 2026, capping private-contract retention at 5%, standardizing change-order disputes, and raising unlicensed-work fines.
U.S. Steel Backs $475M Tubular Line as Pipe Demand Holds
U.S. Steel approved a $475M quench-and-tempering line at its Fairfield Tubular Operations in Alabama, betting on steady oil-country pipe demand into 2029.
Union Craft Wage Settlements Hit ~4.7%, Highest in 15 Years
Union construction wage-and-benefit settlements averaged about 4.7% in early 2026, among the highest in 15 years as labor scarcity keeps pushing pay up.
PERI and CIVE Finish Largest U.S. Multi-Story 3D-Printed Home
A PERI and CIVE project in Houston stands as the largest multi-story 3D-printed home in the U.S., pairing printed concrete walls with conventional wood framing.
Dodge Momentum Index Climbs 6.8% in June as Planning Rebounds
The Dodge Momentum Index rose 6.8% in June to 225.1, with commercial and institutional planning both gaining and 40 projects over $100M entering the pipeline.
Construction Exoskeletons Move From Pilot to Standard PPE
Powered and passive exoskeletons are shifting from jobsite experiments to standard PPE, with studies showing 20 to 35% fewer recordable injuries in the first year.
Campus Geothermal Networks Scale Up as Colleges Ditch Boilers
Colorado Mesa University keeps expanding one of the largest campus geothermal networks in the U.S., and schools from Indiana to Massachusetts are copying the model.
Austin Picks Stacy Witbeck-Sundt JV to Build Light Rail Phase 1
Austin Transit Partnership picked Austin Rail Constructors, a Stacy Witbeck-Sundt JV, to design and build the 10-mile first phase of Project Connect light rail.
Skanska-CEC JV Starts $534M Vincent Thomas Bridge Deck Replacement
A Skanska-CEC JV won a $534M Caltrans contract for the Vincent Thomas Bridge deck replacement, closing the SR-47 Port of LA span for about 16 months.
Brayman-Lane JV Wins $1B ALCOSAN Ohio River Tunnel Contract
Steel City Tunnel Partners, a Brayman-Lane JV, won the ~$1B Ohio River Tunnel contract to cut Pittsburgh combined-sewer overflows by about 7 billion gallons a year.
Army Corps Awards $2B for Military Energy Resilience Projects
The Army Corps awarded up to $2B for military energy-resilience work, funding microgrids, on-base generation and storage so installations can ride through grid outages.
Cleveland Browns Break Ground on Ohio’s First Enclosed Stadium
The Cleveland Browns broke ground on Huntington Bank Field, a domed Brook Park stadium built by an AECOM Hunt-Turner JV with HKS designing, targeting the 2029 season.
Construction Needs 349,000 More Workers in 2026 as Crews Thin Out
ABC pegs the 2026 net hiring need at 349,000 workers and rising, even as enforcement actions pull experienced crews off jobsites in the trades that can least afford it.
Progressive Design-Build Is Now Law for Military Construction
The FY2026 NDAA writes progressive design-build into military construction for the first time and adds multiyear MILCON authority, reshaping how the Pentagon buys buildings.
OSHA Sharpens Silica Enforcement for Concrete and Demolition Crews in 2026
OSHA is leaning harder on respirable silica in 2026, with targeted inspections of concrete, demolition and stone work and close scrutiny of engineering controls and exposure assessments.
Data-Center Construction Spending Runs Four Times Last Year’s Record
Year-to-date data-center construction spending is running about four times 2025’s full-year record, ConstructConnect reports, and it’s carrying an otherwise flat nonresidential market.
Low-Carbon Cement Leaves the Lab as First Commercial Plants Fire Up in 2026
Sublime, Brimstone and National Cement are moving low-carbon cement from pilot to commercial scale in 2026, the first real test of whether green cement can pour like the real thing.