Construction Dive's Friday Punch List series aims to share the week's major construction news headlines that contractors may have missed.

It's been another busy week in construction news. New York State enacted a moratorium on new data center permits, which drew sharp criticism from the state's builders; meanwhile, Micron Technology poured the first concrete at its $100 billion semiconductor campus in New York. But that's not all—here are more reports construction professionals should know about.

National Building Museum opens 'Play House' exhibition this summer

'Catch them while they're young'—that's the core concept behind the 'Play House' exhibition at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C. The space aims to inspire builders of all ages, with a particular focus on young people.

The centerpiece of this summer exhibition is 'The Hill,' carved from layers of birch plywood to form a landscape featuring slides, tunnels, and other gathering spots. From there, visitors can traverse a 100-foot-long obstacle course, climb a 15-foot climbing wall, relax on oversized rope hammocks, shoot hoops, navigate a wave-wall maze, or dig in the 'excavation pit' filled with natural cork—an interactive area inspired by construction sites.

'Playgrounds are where many people first experience the joy of exploration, creation, and connecting with others,' said Aileen Fuchs, president and executive director of the National Building Museum, in a press release. 'We want every visitor to leave with a smile, a sense of possibility, and a deeper understanding of the role that well-designed places play in our lives.'

The 'Play House' exhibition will remain open through August 30.

—Joe Bousquin

Tutor Perini's Lunda unit announces three infrastructure projects

Lunda Construction, a subsidiary of Tutor Perini, recently announced three new projects, achieving a 'hat trick' in the infrastructure sector.

The first, announced on July 8, involves the replacement of the Roberts Street railroad bridge over the Mississippi River in St. Paul, Minnesota. The company will demolish a 113-year-old, 189-foot-long vertical lift truss bridge and replace it with a 215-foot-long rolling bascule truss bridge. Construction begins this month and is expected to be completed in December 2029; the contract amount was not disclosed.

Wisconsin-based Lunda then announced two additional projects on Monday. The Minnesota Department of Transportation awarded the company a $33.4 million contract for Highway 77 work in Hennepin and Dakota counties. The agency also designated Lunda as the apparent low bidder for the Highway 243 project in Chisago County—typically a precursor to a formal award. The company's bid was $28.6 million.

Construction on both Minnesota DOT projects is expected to begin this fall, with completion planned for fall 2028.

—Joe Bousquin

PCL expands data center executive team

PCL is strengthening its U.S. digital infrastructure team. The builder named Tyler Kautz as regional vice president of digital infrastructure in an announcement Tuesday. Kautz will focus on helping the company meet growing customer demand in the hyperscale and colocation data center sectors.

Last July, the company had appointed Kautz as vice president of data centers and tasked him with leading the firm's mission-critical center of excellence. Additionally, Kautz was responsible for the original business case study that led PCL to establish a dedicated data center division.

Over the past two decades, PCL has delivered more than 120 data center and mission-critical projects across North America, according to the announcement. 'Building data centers at speed and scale is one of the most complex challenges in today's construction industry,' Kautz said in the announcement. 'We work hand-in-hand with our clients to build this critical infrastructure in ways that strengthen communities.'

Additionally, PCL appointed Carl Haas as regional manager and Peter Losh as operations manager to oversee the company's ongoing portfolio of data center projects.

—Matthew Thibault

Skanska forms new AI team

Skanska has formed a digital transformation and solutions team, which the company says will help it scale artificial intelligence applications across the organization to improve project delivery.

The initiative focuses on building practical tools to support project teams, according to a press release issued Tuesday. Executive Will Senner, based in Durham, North Carolina, has been appointed senior vice president to lead the team. Senner brings more than 20 years of engineering, preconstruction, and regional leadership experience at Skanska.

'This isn't just about doing today's work faster—it's about rethinking how work gets done,' Senner said in the press release.

The team will operate within the core business of Skanska USA Building—the U.S. construction arm of the Stockholm-based contractor and developer—and will report directly to Chief Operating Officer Chris Toher.

—Zachary Phillips