ConDig (03-Aug-18).  A subsidiary of civil, building and specialty construction company Tutor Perini has bagged a $121 million water and power tunneling project in Los Angeles.

Under the deal with the Los Angeles County Department of Water and Power, Frontier-Kemper Constructors will install about 13,260 lineal feet of 78-inch welded steel water line, 11,810 lineal feet installed inside a tunnel shored with bolted and gasketed pre-cast concrete tunnel segments.

About 490 lineal feet of microtunnel for 78-inch welded steel water line and about 960 lineal feet of 78-inch steel water line will be installed by cut-and-cover methods.

Work on the project is slated to kick off in October this year with substantial completion expected in December 2021.

Tutor Perini said the project was bid earlier this year and Frontier-Kemper entered the lowest bid. But the client subsequently opted to re-bid the project and Frontier-Kemper was again the lowest bidder.

The project is funded by the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund, administered by the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the State Water Resources Control Board.

Last month, Tutor Perini subsidiary Roy Anderson Corp landed a $59 million deal to build a visiting quarters at the Joint Base Charleston, South Carolina.

The US construction industry remains robust, with latest figures from Dodge Data & Analytics showing that construction starts jumped up 11% in June to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $896.3 billion.

The increase marked the second double-digit gain in a row, following the 15% hike that was reported for May.

The rise in June follows a 57% surge in nonresidential building, which benefitted from the start of two large manufacturing plant projects and two substantial office building projects.

Residential building rose 4%, while nonbuilding construction (public works and electric utilities) declined 28% in June.