Industry News

The Department of Energy began construction on an $80 million groundwater treatment plant in Hanover, Wash., in July of 2009. The facility house a system capable of treating 85 million gallons per month of contaminated groundwater from the decommissioned Hanford nuclear site. Completion is expected by 2012. The project is part of $2 billion in stimulus funding allocated by the Department of Energy to support environmental remediation at Hanford.

Fort St. John Hospital broke ground on a $298 million healthcare campus in July of 2009. Located on 40 acres in Fort St. John, B.C., Canada, the $298 million project is comprised of a 55-bed acute care hospital and a 123-bed, 54,000-sf residential care facility. The replacement hospital will feature an expanded emergency department, two new operating rooms, an endoscopy suite, and maternity care rooms. LEED Gold sustainable design certification will be sought for the project, which is slated for completion in spring of 2012.

West Cumberland Hospital has selected Laing O’Rourke as the general contractor for an extensive redevelopment of its hospital campus in Hensingham, U.K. Groundwork will begin in late 2009 on the £100 million project with construction commencing in 2010. The sustainably-designed facility will include an emergency department, surgical suites, inpatient care, and an outpatient clinic.

Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group announced in July of 2009 that it will spend W4.1 trillion on sustainable car manufacturing projects. The company will invest in R&D and facilities construction to create a mass production system for ecological cars by 2012. Hyundai-Kia is also investing W500 billion to reduce carbon emissions at its existing factories. Hyundai Steel is building an integrated steel mill in Dangjin, which will benefit from an additional W23 billion in funding to hasten completion.

President Barrack Obama proposed a $12 billion Community College Initiative on July 14, 2009. Providing direct financial assistance to institutions, the initiative would provide support for modernization and construction, distance learning, and job training. The proposal would enable an additional five million people to receive associate degrees or certificates by 2020. $2.5 billion of the funding would support loans to community colleges for facility construction and renovation.