MAY 2019CONSTRUCTIONINFOCUS.COMPROMOTING THE BENEFITS OF A SUPERIOR MATERIALNew England Concrete Manufacturers AssociationBETTER DRIVING CONDITIONS THROUGH TECHNOLOGYRed Dot CorporationA UNIQUE ARCHITECTURAL FIRM INCORPORATING NEW TECHNOLOGIESAltius Architecture EDITOR’S CORNERMajor metropolises such as Toronto, Chicago and New York City cer-tainly appear bustling on the surface, but in these northern cities, there is even more than meets the eye. Spurred by climate, commerce and crowding concerns, these cities have all built expansive underground pedestrian tunnels beneath their downtown cores. Linking up with public transit access at numerous points, these “tunnels” are more like sprawling shopping centres, offering commuters and consumers the opportunity to shop, dine or get to their destination while staying out of the weather.“Underground villages provide a unique glimpse into ongoing urban design and construction.”In Toronto, the PATH system consists of 3.7 million square feet of retail space with 1,200 restaurants, shops, and services, and provides an estimated 4,600 jobs. It connects to Union Station and many other transit hubs, and affords residents and tourists alike a whole other layer of access and commerce to explore. Chicago’s Pedway, similarly, “connects roughly fifty buildings along forty city blocks of the Loop,” writes Nate Hendley in this issue. NYC’s Concourse at Rockefeller Center, meanwhile, runs beneath Fifth and Sixth Avenues and offers a rich subterranean network of retailers and stores.Expansive and intricate, these underground villages provide a unique glimpse into ongoing urban design and construction. Constantly expanding and evolving, they are systems in flux. In Nate’s Tales from the Underground, the author takes a closer look at the challenges, advantages and quirks of these intrigu-ing destinations.Jaime McKee EditorEDITORJaime McKeeDEPUTY EDITORTim Hocken COPY EDITORThora SmithCONTRIBUTING WRITERSMark Golombek | Anne Lindert-Wentzell | Nate HendleyJosh Carmody | Jen Hocken | Robert HoshowskyPauline Müller | William Young | Ryan CartnerJessica Ferlaino | Jesse Doehler-Knox | Karen HawthorneSamita Sarkar | Margaret Eaton | David O’NeillREGIONAL MANAGER OF RESEARCHCiaran DunneSENIOR CONTENT MANAGERSBrad Mike | Tom England | Peter SwaleCONTENT MANAGERSMehul Jagawat | Alan Keogh | Rosie Walker | Scott ForbesDavid O’Neill | James Corbett | Darragh GilliganWendy Hood-Morris | Aaron ConwaySALES & MARKETING MANAGERLuke SimmsSALES TEAMPamela Taylor | Dean Lucas | Kayla BrownEvan Broussard | Joshuwa Amero | Jason MerriottPRODUCTION COORDINATORChantal De BrouwerGRAPHIC DESIGNERSEbic Tristary | Yoana Ilcheva | Gavin Billings Lindsay Bailey | Victoria Lane | Benjamin ThompsonDIRECTOR OF BUSINESS DEVELOPMENTRobert ChambersPROJECT MANAGERJaimie FoxDIRECTOR OF INTERNATIONAL OPERATIONSColin O’NeillREGIONAL DIRECTOR, NORTH AMERICAAdam CameronOPERATIONS MANAGERJonathan FisherCONTROLLERJen HamiltonPUBLISHERJeff Hocken Suite 300, 7071 Bayers Rd. | Halifax, NS | B3L 2C2 | CanadaP: 1-647-479-2163 | E: info@fmgpublishing.com3INSIDE MAYFOCUS ON: NECMA HEAVY CIVIL, COMMERCIAL & INDUSTRIAL CONCRETE & STEEL CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT & MATERIALS ARCHITECTURE & ENGINEERING 4 Toronto, Chicago, and New York City are three of the largest cities in North America. All are famous for their bustle, energy, work opportu-nities, and tourist attractions. What is less well-known is that all three of these urban centres feature vast areas beneath the street surface where pedestrians can shop, dine, catch a subway, do their banking, or simply avoid inclement weather.CONSTRUCTION SERVICES MECHANICAL, ELECTRICAL, HVAC & PLUMBING 5CONSTRUCTION IN FOCUS SediverADhalfPageBusiness in Focus 2019.indd 118/04/2019 16:23:26Are you planning an event relating to North America’s growing Construction Industry?To get your event listed in Construction in Focus, please contact us at least six to eight weeks before the event takes place at or call 1-647-479-2163WASTEEXPO 20196 – 9 May, Las Vegas, NVFind more than 14,000 of your peers, 609 exhibitors and 60+ educational sessions at WasteExpo 2019. Topics will include the future of the waste industry; trends in construction and demolition; municipal recycling issues; data collection; and much more, paired with fun events and opportunities for networking.For more information WESTERN CANADA APARTMENT INVESTMENT CONFERENCE AND EDMONTON REAL ESTATE FORUM8 – 9 May, Edmonton, ABThe 2nd annual Western Canada Apartment Investment Conference will bring together owners, managers, developers, investors and lenders to provide valuable insights into the multi-unit residential market. This highly focused, one-day conference will examine major trends, issues, opportunities, and strategies in Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver’s multi-unit residential market. Don’t miss the Edmonton Real Estate Forum, taking place the following day.For more information and LAND & DEVELOPMENT29 May, Toronto, ONThe 2019 Land & Development Conference – the 15th annual – will offer insightful keynote presentations and sessions on local, national and global development markets including both residential and commercial activity. This event will focus on the traditional topics of financing, construction, development, investment and leasing market activity while including macro level influences like technology, mobility, resilience, innovation and intensification that will impact the development environment across Canada.For more information STRATEGIC WORKFORCE PLANNING MASTER CLASS5 – 6 June, Atlanta, GACompanies who have identified the need to think beyond day to day reactive hiring needs must develop and understand the key components of a strategic workforce planning effort to create a sustainable workforce for the future. The course targets senior management and talent and workforce professionals working toward the fundamentals of a strategic workforce planning strategy and how it fits into the overall corporate strategy and culture of their organization.For more information AIA CONFERENCE ON ARCHITECTURE 20196 – 8 June, Las Vegas, NVWith the theme of, ‘Blueprint for a Better Future,’ this year’s programming includes sessions on artificial intelligence, data visualization, 3D concrete printing, Amazon Spheres, tall wood, nano-grid condos, immigrant architects, zero net energy affordable housing, new codes and standards, and architecture tours of local standouts like Frank Gehry’s Lou Ruvo Brain Center, Seven Magic Mountains, and the Downtown Container Park. Enjoy seminars, workshops, tours, and an expo with over 750 exhibitors.For more information INDUSTRY EVENTS6 SediverADhalfPageBusiness in Focus 2019.indd 118/04/2019 16:23:26INDUSTRY NEWSFUNDING FOR SOUTH LOOP RESEARCH CENTER REAPPROPRIATEDA funding decision of the previous state leadership in Illinois has been reappropriated and new conditions have been imposed on the University of Illinois’ funding conditions of the develop-ment of its Discovery Partners Institute in Chicago’s South Loop. The project will play an important role in talent development to support the wave of innovation that is taking place in the city. Under the leadership of Bruce Rauner, the state approved $500 million in state funds for the project. While the project is still supported by the new government under Governor J.B. Pritzker, the criteria to release the funds has changed. The new conditions were outlined in Pritzker’s proposed fiscal budget 2020 and require the University of Illinois to raise $500 million in private cash to match the state’s contribution. The funds were no longer listed as a grant, but rather, a state match for private donations, and include conditions that the funds will only be released in structured draws linked to project milestones. INEOS TO ACQUIRE TRONOX’ CRISTALINEOS Enterprises has agreed to purchase National Titanium Dioxide Company Limited (Cristal), Tronox Ltd.’s North American business, in a deal worth $700 million. The transaction includes two plants in Ashtabula, Ohio and will position INEOS as the second largest producer in the pigments market. Titanium dioxide is a white pigment that is used in a variety of applications. Unmatched for its brightness, it is one of the most commonly used white pigments in the manufacture of products like paint, paper and plastic. The deal is part of a proposed remedy package for a much larger deal that has been submitted to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC). It has received support from both Cristal and Tronox’ North American customers but is dependent on FTC approval. 7INDUSTRY NEWSTARKETT TRANSITIONS NORTH AMERICAN OPERATIONS OUT OF CANADATarkett, a global leader in sustainable flooring and sports surfaces, has plans to transition its Canadian operations to the U.S. to optimize its North American footprint. The move will position the company to better anticipate and address con-tinental demand as many of the products it manufactures in Canada are shipped to the U.S. Operations at its Waterloo, Ontario facility, where its accessory offerings are manufactured, will be shifted to the company’s recently expanded Chagrin Falls, Ohio facility. Tarkett’s commer-cial carpet roll operations in Truro, Nova Scotia will be relocated to Decatur, Georgia, a facility that was acquired from Lexmark in 2018. Both the Waterloo and Truro facilities are set to close. The consolidation will reduce Tarkett’s cost base, improve the company’s logistical capacity and generate cost synergies that were required after the Lexmark acquisition last year to position the company for future growth. MARRIOTT TO BUILD WORLD’S TALLEST MODULAR HOTELNew York has many architectural wonders and Marriott plans to add another to the mix. The company announced plans to build the world’s tallest modular hotel, the AC Hotel New York NoMad. On-site assembly of the $65 million project will commence in the fall and the hotel should be open for business by late-2020. The project will feature 168 prefabricated guest rooms and will tower 26 stories high. The modules will arrive on site fully furnished inside and out, and will be ready for assembly. The rooms will be stacked on top of a restaurant and lobby area that will be constructed using traditional methods. The hotel will also feature a modular rooftop bar. Marriott has been committed to modular construction since 2017 and has thirty-one properties that feature prefabricated rooms or bathrooms. The acceptance of modular is part of the company’s cost-cutting efforts to make the buy-in more afford-able for franchisees in the wake of construction delays and the labour shortage. CONTROVERSIAL BILL 66 TO BECOME LAW IN ONTARIO Bill 66, otherwise referred to as the Restoring Ontario’s Competitiveness Act, is one step away from becoming law in Ontario and it will have significant impli-cations for several industries, including construction in the province, pending Royal Assent. The bill takes a total of thirty different actions to ease regulations across twelve sectors ranging from changes to how overtime pay is calculated by employers to day care class sizes, toxic substance rules and much more. Regarding the industry-specific changes that will impact the construction sector, the issue of greatest importance is that the bill classifies several cities and insti-tutions as “non-construction employers” which means the market is about to open to greater competition for a greater number of market players in cities across the province. Larger cities like Hamilton, Toronto, and Waterloo in Southern Ontario, and even smaller cities like Sault Ste. Marie in Northern Ontario will fall under this new classification which means that the tendering process for certain public contracts must now be open to non-union shops. Previously, the tendering process restricted participation and thus, competition.Opponents fear that the bill will reduce overtime pay and worker protections in favor of the employer. Some are con-cerned that it will jeopardize health and safety and will diminish collective bar-gaining rights. Those who are in favor of the legislative change are excited that the tendering process has opened and will facilitate a greater level of competi-tion for union players and non-union players alike. 8 ACTIVE ENERGY AWARDED GRANT FOR NEW PLANT CONSTRUCTION Active Energy Group Plc. has been awarded a $500,000 building re-use and renovation grant that will support construction of a new manufacturing plant in Lumberton, North Carolina. The grant was approved by the North Carolina Rural Infrastructure Authority (NCRIA). The plant will be Active Energy’s first permanent production facility and will be home to its first commercial CoalSwitch product, a fuel substitute that is made from waste wood that would otherwise be left to rot from forestry operations. It can replace coal-fired power stations without the need for plant modification. North Carolina was an ideal location for the company because it offers proximity and access to natural resources, as well as power stations along the Eastern Seaboard, in addition to inter-national markets across the Atlantic and into South America. The 415,000 square foot facility will sit on 151 acres of resource-rich land and once completed it will employ fifty people. The area is rich with prime lumber and will be a good source of feedstock for its CoalSwitch biomass technology. Next >