Summer Construction Boom: Bechtel's Project and More

The construction industry is known for a peak in activity during the hotter months. Drier climes and longer daylight hours make for better working conditions. 

Consequently, summer is typically marked by a wave of construction projects, helping to boost the market and the built environment.

Summer 2026 is no exception, as the total value of mega-projects has exceeded US$100bn. 

Micron semiconductor megafab

Tech powerhouse Micron chose Bechtel as the engineering, procurement and construction partner for the first phase of its US$100bn semiconductor complex. 

Bechtel mobilised straight away at the White Pine Commerce Park in New York. The company plans to leverage modular construction strategies and digital-enabled tools to keep the megafab (a large semiconductor manufacturing facility) on schedule. It is set to be the nation’s largest megafab.

Second Avenue subway, phase II 

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority selected Skanska, Traylor Bros and Walsh Construction to extend New York’s Q line into Harlem, adding stations at 106th and 116th Streets. 

The project is expected to total US$1.02bn. The trio has also won the US$1.29bn Hudson Tunnel contract, while Skanska separately also landed the master developer role on the US$bn Penn Station renovation. 

“We’re proud to have been selected for the second phase of the Second Avenue Subway, which will significantly improve mobility for New Yorkers by expanding Q line access into East Harlem and Harlem,” said Michael Viggiano, Executive Vice President of Skanska USA Civil. 

Kenneth C. Griffin Pavilion, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

Turner and Consigli will build the new pavilion which will cost US$2.3bn. 

Based in New York, it will house 12 operating suites and 208 single-occupancy inpatient beds. 

It is one of the largest healthcare construction jobs of the summer in the US.

Stargate Data Center Campus 

OpenAI, Oracle, contractor Walbridge and other partners have officially broken ground on this multibillion-dollar data centre campus in Michigan.

Detroit-headquartered Walbridge is building the US$16bn, 1GW facility for developer Related Digital, with Oracle and OpenAI as the end users. It is part of the broader nationwide Stargate AI infrastructure buildout. 

“We're excited to be part of the team delivering the advanced infrastructure that will power the next generation of AI and innovation," said Mike Haller, CEO of Walbridge.

Cleveland Hopkins Airport terminal 

Cleveland Hopkins Airport in Ohio has broken ground on the first piece of its US$1.6bn transformation of a terminal renovation, which should be complete in 2032.

Jacobs is overseeing project controls, scheduling and worksite safety across the program, while Shook Construction is leading the Gold Lot build itself. 

A design-build team called CLE Connection Group, including Gilbane Building, Donley's Next Generation Construction, and Independence Excavating, is set to deliver the follow-on parking garage and transit centre.