As the year winds down we’ve done the first estimates for the total construction and the big factor in 2016 was heavy industrial/energy work. The total non-residential construction volume for 2016 is $4.07 billion, the highest level of activity since 2000. Hidden in that number is about $1.3 billion from just three jobs: $580 million Tenaska Westmoreland combined-cycle power plants; the $500 million Revolution cryogenic gas processing plant in Burgettstown; and about $300 million in construction at the Shell petrochemical site in Monaca. Because of the Shell project, volume in this sector will be extraordinarily high for the next three years as well.

In commercial construction, Massaro Corp. is finalizing the GMP for the $50 million Campus Advantage apartments in Oakland. UPMC announced its $111 million Hamot Hospital expansion. The first phase of that project is $10 million of relocations for users in Hamot’s professional building. Building Systems Inc. is doing relocations in the hospital and Massaro Corp. is handling relocations in non-hospital sites. Burchick, F. J. Busse and Landau are putting in proposals today for a new $4.5 million Mars Library. Zamagias Properties has asked Continental Building Co., PJ Dick, Massaro and Rycon for proposals Jan. 10 on its 26-unit Sewickley Lofts, a high-end condo project being built in Sewickley’s village.

Hope the year has been prosperous and 2017 will be better. Happy Holidays!