Industry News

States running short on funding for transportation projects Falling revenues and budget cuts are causing states from Texas to Maryland to rethink funding sources for road and transportation construction. For instance, South Carolina needs to generate about $30 billion in revenues over the next two decades to fund bridges, roads and mass transit. By 2015, Texas' $10 billion annual transportation budget will cover only road maintenance -- not expansion or construction of needed new roads. Virginia is looking to raise $500 million a year in new revenue to devote to reducing traffic congestion. The Augusta Chronicle (Ga.)/The Associated Press (12/8), The Dallas Morning News (free content) (12/9), The Gazette (Gaithersburg, Md.) (12/7), CivSourceOnline.com (12/7)      More Japanese tunnels found to be similar to the Sasago Twelve more tunnels in Japan have ceiling structures similar to that of the Sasago Tunnel that collapsed on Dec. 2, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. The tunnels were constructed between 1967 and 2003. One of the structures built in 1971 contains 60 minor defects, including rusted fixtures and loose bolts. The Japan Daily Press (12/7)      $975M Minnesota Vikings stadium to break ground next fall The Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority has announced that groundbreaking for the $975 million Vikings stadium is set for next October. The authority has issued requests for proposals and plans to reveal the short list of bidders and eventually a finalist by Jan. 25. Star Tribune (Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.) (12/7), Minnesota Public Radio (12/7)      Other News Proposed Atlanta Falcons stadium could cost up to $1.2B The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (12/8)

Technology & Trends

• MHI introduces robot than can work in nuclear disaster sites
  Mitsubishi Heavy Industries has rolled out a robot that can be deployed to nuclear disaster sites. The machine, which was developed to work inside the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in Japan, is equipped with seven cameras and replaceable tools that can collect concrete and cut pipes. The Japan Times/Jiji Press (12/8)     

• Economist: Rise in construction spending shows industry recovering
  Construction spending was up 9.6% from year-ago levels in October, based on an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America. "Widespread gains in spending in October, along with hefty upward revisions to estimates for the previous two months, show that construction has finally come out of its long slump," said Ken Simonson, AGC's chief economist. Denver is one example of a city seeing a building boom. The Orange County Register (Santa Ana, Calif.) (12/9), KDVR-TV (Denver) (12/7)     

• Other News

• Project to extend life of Mich. bridge
  The Saginaw News (Mich.) (12/6)     

Sustainability & Green Building

• Sustainable building goes far beyond energy efficiency
  Green building is fine, but sustainable building is better. That's the consensus of some who saw how poorly many buildings fared in recent natural disasters. "The new green is about protection from the dangers around us -- and ahead of us," writes Chris Sullivan. "The underlying message offers freedom from the blunders of big utilities, government agencies and corporate builders, whose time horizon only extends to their quarterly profit report." SmartPlanet.com/The Take blog (12/5)     

Leadership & HR

• Give your employees the gift of leadership development
  The best bosses know when to step back and let their employees take the lead, writes Jennifer V. Miller. Leadership development shouldn't be reserved for people with a formal title, Miller explains. "When you provide your team members with an opportunity to exercise their leadership muscles, you're giving them a tremendous gift," she writes. SmartBrief/SmartBlog on Leadership (12/6)     

Hot Topics

Top five news stories selected by Concrete SmartBrief readers in the past week.

• Cracks in concrete pontoons on Seattle floating bridge mapped (The Seattle Times)

• Missing bolts could account for collapse of Japanese tunnel (USA Today)

• Concrete is key to this sustainable farmhouse (KSMU-FM (Springfield, Mo.))

• 3 design options for new Tappan Zee Bridge unveiled (Bloomberg)

• Concrete buildings half built in Middle East raise concern (The National (Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates))

• Results based on number of times each story was clicked by readers.

Policy Watch

• Obama, Boehner discuss "fiscal cliff" at private meeting
  President Barack Obama met behind closed doors with House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, to discuss a possible deal to avoid the impending "fiscal cliff." Spokesmen declined to give any details of the meeting. Economists have warned that if the fiscal cliff is not averted, the economy could go into a sharp contraction, triggering a new recession. Los Angeles Times (tiered subscription model)/Politics Now blog (12/9), The New York Times (tiered subscription model)/The Caucus blog (12/9), CNN (12/10)     

ACI News

• Understanding Adhesive Anchors: Behavior, Materials, Installation, Design CD-ROM (SP-283)
  This CD-ROM contains 18 papers that were presented at sessions sponsored jointly by Committee 355 & 503 at the ACI 2010 Spring Convention in Chicago. The objective of the papers is to provide a reference document and give a better understanding of the performance, capability, and reliability of adhesive anchors installed in concrete. The papers present the design, installation, qualification, and inspection requirements. Other papers discuss the characteristics of sustained load behavior and other specific anchor installation and qualification considerations. Order your copy today.     

• Andy Scanlon Symposium on Serviceability and Safety of Concrete Structures: From Research to Practice CD-ROM (SP-284)
  This CD-ROM contains 21 papers that were presented at sessions sponsored jointly by Committee 435 & 348 at the ACI Fall 2011 Convention in Cincinnati, Ohio. The papers encompass a broad overview on the important issues related to serviceability and safety of structures from both a theoretical and design perspective. There are 15 papers on serviceability related to deflection and cracking, an additional five papers on topics related to various aspects of safety, and one paper on sustainability issues. Order your copy today.     

SmartQuote

Alas for those that never sing, But die with all their music in them." --Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr., American physician, writer and poet