FROM: PARSONS BRINCKERHOFF 75 Arlington Street Boston, MA 02116

CONTACT: Bruce Ross Bruce Ross Associates Inc. 212/768-1155

PB MANAGING MAJOR UTILITIES IMPROVEMENT PROJECT FOR MASS. INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

 CAMBRIDGE, MA -- Parsons Brinckerhoff (PB) has been awarded a contract to provide overall project management as well as resident engineering and inspection services for a $50 million utilities upgrade on the campus of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology here.

The project involves improvements along the Vassar Street utility corridor, which runs approximately two miles in length and bisects the 300-acre MIT campus from the Charles River to Kendall Square. Project elements include installation of almost eight miles of domestic water mains, fire protection piping, steam piping, circulating hot water piping, chilled water systems, and sliplined telecom duct banks. In addition, the project will involve removal and disposal of contaminated soil and localized railroad track removal and replacement.

Surface improvements will also be made to Vassar Street, including road rehabilitation, curb replacement, creation of cycleways, sidewalk enhancements, landscaping improvements and reconfigured intersections. The route of the new utilities will impact many critical institutional functions and users, requiring unique and sometimes unorthodox means and methods during construction to minimize disruptions. Special emphasis is being placed on construction staging, scheduling, cost control and public mitigation.

The utilities construction program is in support of MIT's ambitious new building initiative that will include over a dozen projects and expend close to $1 billion overall in an 8-10 year period. PB's responsibilities on the project include overall project management, design management, cost estimating, constructibility reviews, scheduling, permitting assistance and agency liaison, procurement assistance, resident engineering and inspection, change order analysis, project controls and construction mitigation assistance. Construction is scheduled for completion in September 2002.

Parsons Brinckerhoff provides program management, construction management, construction engineering and inspection, and specialized construction consulting services for all types of infrastructure projects and facilities. Ranked in the top 20 construction management firms by Engineering News-Record, Parsons Brinckerhoff employs over 8,500 professionals and support staff in more than 250 offices worldwide. ###

12/19/00

Bruce Ross Associates Inc. 15 West 39th Street New York, NY 10018 212/768-1155 212/944-6435 (FAX)