News

Animal welfare groups in the Republic of Ireland are angry over the apparent insensitive act by a road making contractor who painted a yellow line over a dead cat on the side of the highway. A report by Irish newspapers quoted one person saying it was “shameful” and “nobody cared enough to move this poor cat who had been killed by a car and the line was painted over it”.

It may be early days for using drones – unmanned aerial systems (UAS) -- to map construction sites, but technology and legislation are moving in that direction. At the moment drones can fly within only a 500m radius of the ‘pilot’ standing on the ground, making the flight area a 1km diameter. This is the key limiting issue for any sector, especially road construction, says Jonathan Gill, a robotics engineer and a qualified drone pilot for the past seven years. The logic is that a drone remains withi

Light and compact equipment maker Wacker Neuson Group, based in Munich, Germany, reported record revenue and earnings for the first half of 2015. Revenue for the first six months of 2015 increased 14% relative to the same period 2014, reaching €706.4 million, a record high, the company said in a written statement. “Our business grew significantly, despite negative market developments in many countries, especially outside of the US and Europe,” said Cem Peksaglam, chief executive of Wacker Neuson.

The Mexican Secretariat of Communications and Transport has allocated around US$615 million to complete construction of the second level of Mexico-Veracruz motorway. Works, which is ongoing along the 13.3km stretch, will be concluded by July 2016. The motorway will reinforce the connection between Veracruz port and the industrial areas of Puebla and Mexico states. Last month, the Secretariat confirmed that 80% of the projects included in the national infrastructure plan (PNI) between 2014 and 2018 are

Serbia’s Minister of Construction and Infrastructure, Zorana Mihajlovic, has said that work on the Fruskogorski Corridor motorway will start in the middle of next year. However, she also said talks are due to be held regarding financing of the project. A tender for technical documentation for the project is ongoing and due to be completed by March 2016. The project value has not been mentioned, according to a report by the Serbian news wire agency Tanjug.

According to the Rosavtodor Federal Road Agency, a decision on a contractor for reconstruction of the northern section of the St Petersburg Ring Road, worth nearly US$96 million, has been suspended. The federal public institution St. Petersburg's Transport Bypass Construction Directorate, which manages the road, could not give any details regarding the suspension. The tender was announced in the end of 2014 and a decision on a contractor had already been postponed from June 30 to August 25.

Europe’s largest direct from user auction event, the Hewden August Auction, will be held August 12. The Hewden August auction features power tools, generators, power and lighting towers, amp welders and even 13tonne Caterpillar excavators. The auction comprises ex-rental machinery and cranes owned and operated from new by Hewden. For those who cannot make the event in person, the auction is powered online by Proxibid, where the online provider’s fraud protection technology protects both buyers and seller

The Mexican Secretariat of Communications and Transport has announced that US$7.8 billion, from both public and private sectors, is being invested in road projects as a consequence of the new Mexico City International Airport. Contracts include 11 renovation projects to improve the access to Mexico Valley and the connections to the new terminal. Work at Mexico-Pachuca, Mexico-Queretaro and Ecatepec-Piramides motorways was completed in June. The bridge connecting Urbana Sur with Mexico-Cuernavaca motorway

According to a report from Autoridad de los Puertos (AP), the state-owned company responsible for ports and airports in Puerto Rico, the companies hired to repave the runway at the Rafael Hernandez airport, in Aguadilla, have committed alleged irregularities and possible fraud. The two companies, Robles Asphalt and BTB Asphalt, have already been fined US$3.6 million for failures by the Federal Court which to be paid within a five-year period.

Algeria’s Minister of Public Works, Abdelkader Ouali, has told the state of El Taref that negotiations between his department via the national agency of highways (ANA) and the COJAAL consortium for the completion of the construction of the country’s east-west expressway are progressing well. Negotiations between the two parties should continue in order to find technical solutions and financial adjustment, he said. He also announced that the public group Cosider has been selected to reinforce companie

Denver’s Regional Transportation District (RTD) Board of Directors has approved a US$140 million two-phased contract award to Balfour Beatty Infrastructure (BBII) to design and build the Southeast Rail Extension. Design will begin during the fall with construction expected to start in spring 2016. The Southeast Rail Extension will build an additional 2.3 miles of light rail on the existing Southeast Rail Line south of Lincoln. When complete it will include an end-of-line station at RidgeGate Parkway,

Work could begin in November on a 4km section of the Circunvalacion Norte northern ring road around the Costa Rican capital city San Jose. The section will connect the Pan-American Highway with Route 32. But delays in agreeing land expropriation have hindered the start of work.

XCMG is developing its overseas activities with a programme called 'One Belt, One Road'. Representatives from 18 countries recently travelled to XCMG’s headquarters in China to launch the firm’s new Overseas Service Activity. This is focusing particularly on service support for customers involved in the New Silk Road project.