safety – Page 3 – Building Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania Weekly Construction Recap – Top Stories for Week Ending August 29, 2025

On Labor Day, we celebrate every worker whose skill, commitment, and perseverance help build the America we’re proud to call home. Happy Labor Day!

On this year’s Labor Day, we celebrate every worker whose skill, commitment, and perseverance help build the America we’re proud to call home.

Here are the top construction stories in Pennsylvania this week:

Restoring An Icon: Fallingwater Renovation Underway: A $7 million restoration project is underway at Frank Lloyd Wright’s famous Fallingwater estate in the Laurel Highlands. The two-year effort—set to wrap up by spring 2026—aims to eliminate chronic water infiltration by replacing roofs, repairing steel frames, injecting nearly 12 tons of grout into stone masonry, and restoring exterior walls. The work must uphold UNESCO and National Register standards, making execution especially complex. READ MORE.

$1.6 B Montgomery Lock & Dam Modernization: In Monaca, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has begun a $1.59 billion rehabilitation of the Montgomery Lock and Dam on the Ohio River. The project includes demolishing the auxiliary lock chamber and building a new, larger 110-ft × 600-ft primary lock. Completion is targeted for 2033, and work remains in early stages. READ MORE.

Fast-Tracking Renewable Energy Permits Ahead of Federal Deadline: Pennsylvania is accelerating wind and solar project approvals to qualify for expiring federal tax credits before July 2026, amid President Trump’s phase-out policy. Gov. Josh Shapiro is advocating for a state energy siting board to streamline permitting, similar to Michigan’s 2023 law, to cut bureaucratic delays and boost construction starts. READ MORE.

Stay Safe, Stay Informed & Keep Building Pennsylvania!

Pennsylvania Weekly Construction Recap – Top Stories for Week Ending August 22, 2025

Here are the top construction stories for Pennsylvania this week:

Golf course sold for a data center: The Dauphin Highlands Golf Course in Harrisburg has been sold for $45.6 million despite $13 million in debt. The site is set for redevelopment into a data center, promising considerable tax revenue. The deal is expected to close by December 31, 2027, pending final conditions. READ MORE.

Detentions of construction workers by ICE: At least 25 migrant construction workers were detained while heading to work in Pennsylvania. Some were sent to a processing center in Moshannon Valley. The incident has drawn condemnation from immigrant rights groups. READ MORE.

Buildsylvania’s AI-Driven Construction Boom: Pennsylvania is experiencing a massive construction surge fueled by AI and energy demands, with $92 billion in private sector investments announced by U.S. Senator Dave McCormick. Projects include grid upgrades and dam refurbishments to support AI infrastructure, described as a “trillion-dollar, multi-front construction project” unprecedented in scale since the Industrial Revolution. READ MORE.

Stay Safe, Stay Informed & Keep Building Pennsylvania!

Keystone Contractors Association Names Steven Fitzpatrick as 2025 Labor Champion

Fitzpatrick honored as this year’s Thomas George Memorial Community Service Awardee for his exceptional dedication to workforce development & community impact

[Harrisburg, PA] — The Keystone Contractors Association (KCA) is proud to announce that Steven Fitzpatrick has been named the recipient of the 2025 Thomas George Memorial Community Service Award, an annual honor recognizing outstanding service and leadership in Pennsylvania’s construction industry.

Fitzpatrick, a respected labor advocate and industry leader working as a Superintendent for Rocky Bleier Construction Group as a member of Eastern Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters Local 431, was named this year’s Construction Labor Champion for his relentless efforts to improve working conditions, strengthen labor-management partnerships, and champion community engagement across the region.

“Steven Fitzpatrick embodies the spirit of this award—service, leadership, and integrity,” said Jon O’Brien, Executive Director of the Keystone Contractors Association. “His commitment to advancing the construction workforce while giving back to the community makes him a true labor champion and a worthy recipient of this year’s honor.”

About the Thomas George Memorial Community Service Award

Established in memory of longtime KCA Executive Director Thomas George, the award honors individuals who demonstrate exceptional service to their community and the construction industry. Winners reflect George’s lifelong values: collaboration, respect, and a passion for elevating both labor and management in construction.

Fitzpatrick was selected through a nomination process involving peers and industry stakeholders, who cited his leadership in labor advocacy, safety initiatives, and community-building efforts as among the best in the industry.

When accepting this award, Fitzpatrick was quick to highlight many of the great organizations he supports like the Harrisburg PTSD Run for Veterans, Fort Indiantown Gap Wreaths Across America and St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.

Fitzpatrick was formally honored at the 2025 Construction Celebration, where industry leaders will celebrate his achievements and ongoing commitment to excellence. Click here to view video highlights: 2025 Construction Celebration Recap.

Keystone Contractors Association Recognizes Excellence in Jobsite Safety with Annual Safety Awards

[Harrisburg, PA] — The Keystone Contractors Association (KCA) continues its tradition of promoting workplace safety and health through its annual KCA Safety Awards Program—an initiative that honors construction firms throughout Pennsylvania for outstanding safety performance and commitment to protecting their workforce.

The KCA Safety Awards highlight general contractors, subcontractors, and specialty contractors who demonstrate exceptional safety records, industry leadership, and innovative safety practices. Participating firms submit detailed safety data—including total hours worked, OSHA recordable incidents, and lost-time injuries—which are analyzed and compared to national safety benchmarks.

“Safety is the cornerstone of everything we do in the construction industry,” said Jon O’Brien, Executive Director of KCA. “These awards are about more than just numbers—they reflect the daily commitment our members make to ensure every worker returns home safe.”

Each year, winners are honored during the Construction Celebration, a special event hosted by KCA in Harrisburg that’s promoted across industry publications and media platforms. In addition to recognizing company-level achievements, the program helps elevate safety awareness and best practices across the state’s construction sector. Highlights from this year’s event: 2025 Construction Celebration Recap.

The KCA Safety Awards are open to all association members, and data is submitted confidentially for evaluation. The program aligns with KCA’s broader mission to improve industry standards, foster collaboration among contractors, and promote workforce development throughout Pennsylvania.

KCA Safety Award Winners in Honored in 2025:

General Contractor: Safest Record with ZERO injuries over 100k hours

Quandel Construction Group, LLC

NOTE: This category winner receives the HB Alexander Trophy, named after a founding father of the KCA who was renowned for safety leadership.

Subcontractor: Safest Record over 100k hours

Novingers, Inc.

General Contractor: Safest Record with ZERO injuries between 50k & 100k hours

Serviam Construction, LLC

Subcontractor: Safest Record between 50k &100k hours

Penn Installations, Inc.

General Contractor: Safest Record with ZERO injuries under 50k hours

Bill Anskis Company, LLC

Subcontractor: Safest Record with ZERO injuries under 50k hours

Ralph E. Jones, Inc.

Most Improved Safety Record

McClure Company

About the KCA: The Keystone Contractors Association is a commercial construction trade association that provides services in areas such as safety, education, career development, labor relations, community service and government relations. For more information, interview requests or photographs, please contact the KCA: 717-731-6272 \ Jon@KeystoneContractors.com.

Pennsylvania Weekly Construction Recap – Top Stories for Week Ending August 15, 2025

Here are the top construction stories in Pennsylvania this week:

U.S. Steel Clairton Coke Works Explosion: A tragic explosion at the U.S. Steel Clairton Coke Works near Pittsburgh on August 11, 2025, resulted in two fatalities and at least 10 injuries. The incident caused significant damage to the facility, with emergency crews continuing search and rescue operations for a missing worker. The cause of the explosions remains under investigation, and the event has raised concerns about safety and environmental issues at the plant, which has a history of accidents and pollution-related lawsuits. READ MORE.

Penn Hills AML Reclamation Project Success: The Penn Hills AML Reclamation Project in Allegheny County was highlighted this week for successfully addressing long-standing issues from abandoned coal mines, such as flooded basements and dangerous mine discharge. Completed by August 12, 2025, this award-winning project has eliminated these hazards, improving living conditions for residents. WATCH VIDEO.

State Budget Update Featuring Infrastructure Money: The Pennsylvania House approved legislation that includes $292 million in additional funding for SEPTA, aiming to forestall service cuts that could have slashed up to 50% of transit operations statewide. Furthermore, the bill proposes $325 million in highway funding and $275 million for rural roads, which would sustain and potentially expand crucial infrastructure construction initiatives. READ MORE.

Stay Safe, Stay Informed & Keep Building Pennsylvania!

Pennsylvania Weekly Construction Recap – Top Stories for Week Ending August 8, 2025

Here are the top construction stories in Pennsylvania this week:

Pennsylvania is BOOMING: Pennsylvania’s construction sector is active, with $34 billion contributed to the state’s GDP in 2024 and 31,000 construction establishments. Projects like those in Pittsburgh and statewide infrastructure improvements (e.g., PennDOT’s 684 bridge projects in 2023) indicate robust activity. READ MORE.

Major Work on I-95 In Philly: Overhead sign structure installation will close I-95 North at night August 11-14 in Center City, with ongoing inlet repairs weekdays August 1-29 on I-95 North near Academy Road in Northeast Philadelphia. This represents one of the most significant traffic-impacting construction projects currently underway in the state. READ MORE.

Windfarm Upgrades Help with AI Data Center Growth: Exus recently secured over $158 million to boost capacity at the Twin Ridges wind farm in Somerset County—raising its output by around 30% to 170 MW—and to upgrade the Patton wind farm in Cambria County. These enhancements aim to meet skyrocketing energy demands from AI data centers across the state. READ MORE.

Stay Safe, Stay Informed & Keep Building Pennsylvania!

Pennsylvania Construction Weekly Recap – Top Stories for Week Ending July 18, 2025

This week’s biggest construction news stories.

Here are the top construction news stories across Pennsylvania for the week ending July 18, 2025:

GE Vernova Invests $80 Million in Charleroi Facility Expansion
GE Vernova is investing $80 million to expand its grid solutions factory in Charleroi, Pennsylvania, creating 250 new jobs. This investment aims to modernize the electric grid by increasing production of high-voltage switchgear products, essential for the U.S. power infrastructure. The expansion supports growing energy demands and reinforces Pennsylvania’s role in advancing national grid reliability. READ MORE
PennDOT Highlights 57 New Transportation Projects in Pittsburgh Region
The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) announced 57 new transportation improvement projects set to begin in 2025 in the Pittsburgh region, covering Allegheny, Beaver, and Lawrence counties. These projects will improve 551 miles of roadway and 43 bridges, aligning with Governor Shapiro’s vision for a safe and efficient transportation network. Motorists are urged to exercise caution in work zones. READ MORE
$90+ Billion Investment Set to Boost PA Construction JobsCompanies like Blackstone, Google, Amazon, and CoreWeave have announced over $90 billion in AI and energy infrastructure investments across Pennsylvania. Thousands of construction jobs are expected as the state becomes a key hub for digital and energy innovation. READ MORE

Stay safe, stay informed, and keep building Pennsylvania strong.

May Is Mental Health Awareness Month

The Keystone Contractors Association is hosting virtual discussions each week in May for Mental Health Awareness Month. These webinars aim to address mental health issues in the construction industry, provide resources for companies and workers. The series ends on a hopeful note with a personal story of overcoming anxiety and depression.

With May being Mental Health Awareness Month, the Keystone Contractors Association is offering some excellent virtual discussions/presentations each week to help us all on our journeys. This journey starts Monday, May 6, at noon and we hope to help many with these events.

Let’s Talk about Mental Health!, Mon, May 6, 2024 at 12:00 PM

To kick off the Mental Health Awareness webinar series, we’re going to first lay the foundation to build off of. Kara McCaffrey starts the conversation, making it known that’s ok to talk about mental health issues. Safety is undeniably critical in construction to ensure you take care of your employees and your business. But did you know that more people die by suicide in construction than from all fatal work-related injuries combined? In this webinar, learn more about mental health, why the construction industry has such high rates of suicide, and hear how one construction company is making a difference in this space. Prioritizing and putting more of an emphasis on worker well-being and mental health, and not just safety, could end up saving more lives than you know.

Construction Wellbeing Initiative, Mon, May 13, 2024 at 12:00 PM

After this opening webinar, and its’ established that’s it’s ok not to be ok, this next webinar focuses on resources for construction companies and workers. When it comes to supporting your field employees’ mental health, you do not need to reinvent the wheel! Sebastien de Ghellinck and his company SkillSignal partnered with Princeton University to identify, analyze, and curate positive interventions from construction professionals that have demonstrated a positive impact on workers’ wellbeing.

Naloxone 101, Mon, May 20, 2024 at 12:00 PM

You’ve heard about NARCAN and you may have even known someone who has used it but are you prepared to save someone’s life? As you may know, the KCA supports the annual Construction Opioid Awareness Week and we encourage every construction company to partake in some educational outreach during this week, which is the last full week of July. Each year we build on our resources and feature a new goal or resource. Our goal this year is have every construction jobsite to have Naloxone on it and we are excited to be able to feature Chris Lalevee from Operating Engineers Union 825 deliver this talk. Chris was one of the first advocates in the country for Naloxone on every jobsite.

Living, Working & Fixing Anxiety & Depression from a Construction Executive, Tue, May 28, 2024 at 12:00 PM

At the KCA we are really excited to offer this webinar series during May. We wanted to finish it on a high note with a story of hope and we think we accomplished that goal! Chris Linton is a construction executive from the southeastern area of Pennsylvania who has struggled with major anxiety and depression. It’s a new day for him and his mental health struggles and challenges have improved. He wants to share his story and help others.

Please feel free to share these virtual offerings with your network.

Life Lessons Are All Around

Recently I was driving with one of my daughters and as we went through the construction road project she says, “dad do you know that guy?” She was asking about the flagger who was directing traffic as we entered the construction zone.

I told her I did not know that individual and how I wave to all flaggers. She responded with, “yeah I know you wave all the time, but that guy smiled when he waved back, and it looked like he knows you.”

After we drove through the jobsite, I went on to explain why I wave to the flaggers: Try putting yourself in someone else’s shoes in life. If you have a job where you see people all day long, would you rather see people who look at you, appreciate your role and give you a friendly smile? Or would you rather encounter people all day long that ignore you?

Every job is important and serves a purpose, that’s why employers pay workers for their efforts. Using the construction flagger as an example, can imagine life without the flaggers – it would be chaos without them, and I appreciate the order and safety they bring to our roadways.

I didn’t expect to have this discussion with my daughter as we drove to her cheer practice, but I’m glad we took advantage of the moment. Life lessons are all around, just look for the signs and make the most when the opportunity arises.

A Veterans Day Message from the Keystone Contractors Association

This Veterans Day let’s all step up our appreciation for our country’s heroes. It’s a nice gesture when we see a Veteran to say ‘Thank you for your service’ but it doesn’t have to end with that. Ask the Veteran how they’re doing or how they’re day is going or if they’re looking for a civilian career.

As you may know Veterans have one of the highest suicide rates in the country. In the recently released 2022 National Veterans Suicide Prevention Annual Report by the Veteran Affairs, it was reported that in 2020 (the most recent data) 6,146 Veterans took their life. Suicide is now the 12^th leading cause of death in America and it continues to hit the Veteran population hard. According to the recent VA report, Pennsylvania was the fifth highest on the list with 240 Veteran Suicides. Our state’s annual number has dropped every year since 2017 when we lost 294 Veterans, but at 240 we have lots of work to do and we’re not moving fast enough as we strive to reach zero.

Finances and lack of purpose could be two reasons why one might contemplate this fatal decision. The construction industry offers family-sustaining careers in both professional and labor positions. Construction professionals take pride in building Pennsylvania and with the strong work ethic Veterans are equipped to be successful in this industry.

This year the KCA, in partnership with our labor allies, went to great lengths to educate organizations and individuals who work with Veterans as they transition from the military to civilian life. The Carpenters and Laborers unions have been excellent stewards of the industry and together we worked with both to talk about the benefits of working in this industry, the type of positions and guidance for entering. We are not done either. For the remainder of this year and for the foreseeable future we plan to continue this outreach. If you are interested in learning how you and your organization can get involved, please let the KCA know.

In closing, this Veterans Day saying ‘Thank you for your service’ is appreciated, but remember you never know what a person is going through by simply looking at them and giving a passerby message. A little conversation can go a long way and can be the best way to show your appreciation.