Dec 2011 - Parsons Brinckerhoff

Letter
from the
CEO
Inside
Page
18
© 2011 DAVID SAILORS
Increasingly, power producers must not only generate a constant supply of electricity, but must also
produce additional power on demand—whether in response to scorching summer temperatures or to
supplement the sporadic nature of wind and solar energy. For clients worldwide, Parsons Brinckerhoff is
contributing to power plants that can quickly ramp up to meet peak demands. In this issue of NOTES we
present some of those projects as well as examples of our work in traditional base load power generation
and geothermal technology.
As part of a joint venture with TIC, Parsons Brinckerhoff developed Arizona’s Coolidge Generating Station
under an engineer-procure-construct contract. The Coolidge plant (pictured on the cover) can start up and
produce 500 MW in just 10 minutes when the searing summer heat in the American Southwest results in a spike
in demand for electricity to run air conditioners. Parsons Brinckerhoff and TIC also collaborated on a similar
peaking power plant that helped Austin, Texas, keep cool during a record-breaking heat spell this past summer.
In Portugal, Parsons Brinckerhoff was owner’s engineer for the Pego Power Plant, which can rapidly
produce more than 800 MW to meet demands for energy in a country that relies heavily on wind power. In
Ireland, Parsons Brinckerhoff served as owner’s engineer for the Whitegate Independent Power Plant, which
combines reliable base load efficiency and fast response time, allowing it to complement wind power while
satisfying the nation’s daily power needs.
Halfway around the globe, Parsons Brinckerhoff is contributing its engineering and project management
expertise to the Te Mihi geothermal power station in New Zealand, continuing a tradition of work in
geothermal that began more than 50 years ago and includes more than 100 projects in New Zealand,
Australia, Indonesia, Kenya, Ethiopia, and the Philippines.
Parsons Brinckerhoff’s experience in conventional power generation extends back even further, to the early
1900s, when the firm designed some of the earliest hydroelectric power plants on the Hudson River in New
York. The firm dramatically expanded its presence in the global power market in the late 1990s through
its acquisition of British engineering consultancies Merz and McLellan and Kennedy & Donkin, as well as
DesignPower New Zealand, a specialist in renewable energy. Parsons Brinckerhoff’s global power portfolio
includes some of the largest power stations in the Middle East in addition to projects throughout Asia,
Australasia, Europe, and North America.
As it has since its inception, Parsons Brinckerhoff offers a broad range of expertise in both conventional
and renewable technologies to help energy suppliers worldwide produce power on demand.
George J. Pierson
President and Chief Executive Officer
Parsons Brinckerhoff Inc.
Page 2
Page 10
Page 14
2
Arizona’s Coolidge
Generating Station
This peaking power plant quickly
goes into action when demand
for electricity soars.
6
Powering County Cork
Parsons Brinckerhoff was owner’s
engineer for one of the most
efficient electricity-generating
plants in Ireland.
10
Responding to Demand
Portugal’s Pego Power Plant is
able to quickly adjust to shifts in
demand for electricity.
12
Austin Gets Power Boost
The enlarged Sand Hill plant
helped meet demand for energy
during a period of record high
temperatures.
13
Tapping the Heat Below
New Zealand’s Te Mihi geothermal
power station turns the Earth’s
heat into usable energy.
14
Bangalore Opts
For Sustainable
Transportation
Namma Metro or “Our Metro”
opens in India’s third-largest city.
16
World’s Longest
Guided Busway Opens
The Cambridgeshire busway
extends 25 kilometers (15.5
miles) from St Ives to Cambridge.
18
A New Home
For Justice
A new courthouse and judicial
center opens in Augusta, Georgia.
20
Notes on Projects
24
Notes on the Firm
ON THE COVER:
The Coolidge Generating Station
in Arizona.
Parsons Brinckerhoff, founded in 1885,
is recognized as a leader in strategic
consulting, planning, engineering, program
management, construction management,
and operations and maintenance for all
types of infrastructure. The firm has
approximately 14,000 people worldwide
in 150 offices on six continents. Parsons
Brinckerhoff is part of Balfour Beatty
plc, the international infrastructure
Group operating in professional services,
construction services, support services, and
infrastructure investments.
Editorial Board
George J. Pierson
Nick Flew
Chuck Kohler
David McAlister
Pat Schaffner
Judy Cooper
Executive Editor
Tom Malcolm
Editor
Muriel Adams
Contributors
Muriel Adams
Leon Erlanger
Charlotte Forbes
Julie Johnson
Terry Kuflik
Tom Malcolm
Kathy Montvidas
Susan Walsh
Graphics Services Manager
Richard Mangini
Graphic Design
Gary Hessberger
Director of Corporate
Communications
Judy Cooper
Parsons Brinckerhoff Inc.
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NOTES is published three times a year by
Parsons Brinckerhoff for the employees,
affiliates, and friends of Parsons Brinckerhoff.
Please contact the Executive Editor in the New
York office for permission to reprint articles.
© 2011 Parsons Brinckerhoff Inc.
All rights reserved.
Notes • 1