At SPS, our bridge projects bring us into some incredible neighborhoods and communities throughout the State and its always our goal to improve each before we depart.
Recently we’ve had the pleasure of working on the Dalton St. Bridge directly adjacent to one of the most iconic firehouses in Boston, Engine 33 & Ladder 15. Positioned on the Boston Marathon Route the firefighters from this house are some of the busiest in the City answering thousands of calls a year.
As SPS completes our bridge project, we are proud and humbled to deliver a refurbished Boston Marathon Bench to our First Responders at Engine 33 & Ladder 15.
BFD, Thank You for answering the bell every day and for all you do to Keep Boston Running!
Special thanks to HCSS for featuring our Award-Winning I-495 Haverhill Design Build Project.
From the article:
“SPS New England successfully navigated these challenges to deliver a much-needed infrastructure upgrade. Their expertise in bridge building has been a partnership with HCSS since 2002, when tighter profit margins required the company to shift from a revenue-based company that relied on accounting for relaying costs after-the-fact, to a company that could instantly measure daily costs using HeavyJob in 2005. Operating with a budget created directly from the estimate created in HeavyBid, SPS New England’s foremen can use their iPads in the field to track the time their crew spends on a specific phase of work against the budget set by the estimators.
With the seamless integration of HeavyBid to HeavyJob, the budgeted production rate from HeavyBid, along with logged man-hours, quantity tracking, and material tracking can inform the field if they are ahead or behind.
According to SPS – a resource and cost-loaded critical path method (CPM) schedule was used for this project. Implementing a CPM schedule in conjunction with the project controls of HeavyJob, HCSS provided the project management team with up-to-date job cost information, projected spending, and cost projections. This led to an overall best-practice management of the project’s budget. Change orders accounted for $4,043,729.81 (4.24 percent) of the project value; 90 percent of this amount was attributed to an owner-directed safety improvement for designing and constructing a slip ramp on the I-495 mainline.”
The Belden G. Bly Drawbridge Project achieved a significant milestone yesterday. The Team performed a successful test opening of the new bridge at around 6:00pm.
Work began on this project in January of 2021. The bascule span erection work was restricted to occur during a USCG Saugus River channel closure between 2/1/24 and 5/15/24. The SPS Team, MassDOT and our Subcontractor partners worked tirelessly to achieve this milestone.
Congratulations to the entire Team.
Special thanks to Savanna Media for producing this video.
On June 3, 2024, SPS New England attended the Mark H. Hasso Project Excellence and Scholarship Awards Program hosted by the Construction Management Association of America (CMAA) – New England Chapter.
At the event, the Joint Venture team of BOND Civil & Utility Construction / SPS New England received the award of Project of the Year for the L1332-C4 Terminal B-C Main Roadways Project at Boston Logan International Airport for the Massachusetts Port Authority. Members of the project team took time to present the project to peers during the event.
Thank you to our partners on the successful project, Bond Civil & Utility, Stantec, and Massachusetts Port Authority.
The SPS-Walsh Joint Venture crews continue I-90 mainline Stage 1 bridge construction. Pier cofferdam construction in the Charles River has completed and crews have been moving forward with driven piles, tremie seal, concrete pile cap and lower column placements of Pier 2. This work has included 400 cubic yards of recently placed concrete for the Pier 2 bridge foundation elements.
Kudos to the crew for their hard work and dedication. It’s efforts like these that lay the foundation for not just structures, but also for strong teamwork and project success.
Shout out to Benevento Companies for delivering a quality product and Independent Concrete Pumping Corp. for their support in the placement operation.
SPS recently completed high priority overhead concrete and pile repairs at the Bass River Bridge in Yarmouth. Tight access, tides, growing repairs, and an expedited repair schedule made this project a challenge for everyone involved. The project started in January and was completed a few days prior to the Fourth of July weekend. It took a huge effort from SPS Superintendents, Foreman, Labor, Operations, Marine Division and Project Management . Mark Rousseau (Site Superintendent) was supported by Joe Harvey, Joe Ford, Nick Terenzoni, Ben Terenzoni, Jimmy Zechello, John Desimone, Jason Williams, Jeremiah Connolly, Chris Pickford, and very determined crew. Congratulations to everyone who made this one a success.
The Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority announced that the Dorchester Avenue Bridge in Boston is under construction.
The bridge, which is located between Von Hillern and Kemp streets, was built in 1925 and rehabilitated in 1975. The steel bridge carries vehicles, pedestrians and bicyclists over the Red Line, the Commuter Rail Old Colony Lines and the Cabot Yard maintenance tracks.
Photo courtesy of MBTA Customer and Employee Experience Department
It is being replaced to protect its structural integrity and ensure reliable service.
Work began on the project in the summer of 2022. The budget for the project is $47,125,079 and is provided by federal formula funds and some MBTA matching funds, according to Lisa Battison, a spokesperson of the MBTA.
The lead contractor on the project is SPS New England of Salisbury, Mass., and Select Demo Services of Salem, N.H., is the demolition contractor.
“Dorchester Avenue over the MBTA Red Line, Cabot Yard Spur and Old Colony Main Line consists of replacement of the existing three-span highway bridge with a new, two-span precast reinforced concrete deck panel slab and cast in place closure pours, sidewalks and barriers, on weathering steel multi-girder superstructure,” according to SPS New England. “A new pile supported abutment will be constructed behind the existing reinforced concrete rigid frame south abutment of the south span, using drilled and driven pipe piles and a reinforced cast-in-place concrete cap.
“A new pile supported pier will be constructed between the existing granite block south abutment of the north span and the reinforced concrete rigid frame north abutment of the middle span, using drilled and driven pipe piles and a reinforced cast-in-place concrete cap,” SPS added. “The existing granite block north abutment of the north span will be reused, and a new precast reinforced concrete cap will be placed on top to support the new superstructure.”
To relocate the existing utilities from the existing Dorchester Avenue bridge, a prefabricated temporary utility bridge will be erected on a reinforced concrete foundation supported by drilled micropiles. Work also includes the rehabilitation of an existing 300-ft. long bin wall by installing soil nails and a reinforced concrete face.
ENR New England is excited to announce this year’s group of regional Best Project winners, with 19 projects awarded in 13 main categories.
In addition to the 2024 main category winners found in the list below, the Best Projects safety and sustainability awardees, which are juried by a separate group of safety and sustainability experts, will be announced next month in the ENR New England free e-newsletter. Finalists for this year’s ENR New England Project of the Year will also be announced soon.
Projects were evaluated on the ability of the project team to overcome challenges, safety, construction/design quality, and contribution to the industry and the community.
Project Category: Airport/Transit
Regional Award Level: Award of Merit
Project Name: Logan International Airport – Terminal B-C Roadways Program
During the MBTA‘s recent 10-day Green Line shutdown from August 2nd – August 11th, the Railroad-SPS JV completed various track and site improvements in Boston’s Allston neighborhood along Commonwealth Ave. Our work included over 2,200 feet of full depth track replacement, including more than 450 feet of grade crossing replacement at Warren Street and Allston Street. The JV also installed 1,600 feet of new track drainage pipe, replaced 2,000 feet of restraining rail, reset hundreds of granite curbs, installed 4 new duct banks to support MBTA traction power, and installed new asphalt platforms at Warren and Allston stations. This extensive work resulted in 8 speed restrictions being removed from the Green Line B Branch. The work was completed successfully with the help of our subcontractors and continuous support from the City of Boston and various MBTA departments.
SPS New England is nearing completion at the City of Boston Glenwood Avenue Pedestrian Bridges in Hyde Park. The new timber decking was completed last week following structural steel repairs and bridge painting that began in June 2023. The bridge will be opened this fall for pedestrian traffic.
