Adams, Sauer to Receive 2023 Outstanding Achievement Awards
The Moles announced the winners of its 2023 Outstanding Achievement in Construction Awards. The winners will be honored at The Moles Awards Dinner on Feb. 1, 2023 at the New York Hilton Midtown hotel.
Hank Adams
In 1977, Hank Adams participated in The Moles Students Day tour of the 63rd Street Tube Tunnel Project in New York City. It was a pivotal moment as he found his calling to pursue a career in heavy construction—a lifelong commitment for he and his family that also has had a positive impact on Kiewit and the industry.
Hank joined Kiewit in 1979 after graduating from Fairleigh Dickenson University in NJ with a degree in construction engineering technology. While he started in a field engineer role, he steadily grew into superintendent, project manager, district and division manager and executive leadership positions.
Today, Hank is Executive Vice President of Kiewit Corporation. Throughout his career, Hank has worked hard to have a positive impact at Kiewit, working side by side with, and leading teams made up of, dedicated, talented Kiewit personnel on dozens of successful projects in the Chicago, Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions. He currently oversees more than $2 billion in revenue and has played a key role in the strategic direction of the company.
Hank has led, managed and served on several complex, high-profile projects that have reflected his focus on building strong teams, developing talented professionals and delivering high-quality projects. Hank and a dedicated team were instrumental in delivering the Queensboro Bridge Rehabilitation, a two -level, 10-lane bridge over the East River in NYC, that is used by 100,000 drivers each day. On the $600 million Willis Avenue Bridge project in the Bronx, New York, Hank and his team championed an innovative offsite construction approach that substantially minimized traffic disruptions and reduced client costs.
Following the collapse of the World Trade Center (WTC) in 2001, Hank and his team oversaw Kiewit’s accelerated effort to install a new slurry wall that doubled the useable size of the site. The expanded footprint helped pave the way for three new skyscrapers, the WTC Memorial Gardens, and the National September 11 Memorial & Museum.
Hank has consistently taken an active role in the construction industry, including leadership positions in construction, engineering and contractor organizations in New York, New Jersey and beyond. This includes serving terms as President of The Moles (2014) and the Construction Institute of the ASCE. He was inducted into the National Academy of Construction in 2017 and received the Golden Beaver Award for Supervision in 2019.
Hank received the Distinguished Alumnus Award from SUNY-Delhi in 2012, from where he received his Associates Degree in Applied Science.
In addition to his many years of service at Kiewit, he also supports numerous charitable foundations, including The Moles Charitable Fund and is a board member for CureSearch Children’s Cancer Research Institute.
Dr. Gerhard Sauer
In 1979, he established the “Büro” (private consultancy) Dr. Sauer in Salzburg, Austria, to offer value engineering designs based on the cost effectiveness of NATM compared to traditional tunnelling methods. Following successes in Europe, the company expanded in the US and the United Kingdom, designing some of the first NATM tunnels in each country, including Wheaton Station and its associated running tunnels, crossover caverns, escalator tunnels and access shafts for the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA).
The designs also included new membrane-type waterproofing system, never before used in the US, providing for complete watertightness in the tunnels and stations. The contract won the 1987 ASCE Award for best civil engineering project (National Capitol Section).
Dr. Sauer has been a highly regarded tunneling expert with a global reputation for delivering cost-effective, innovative design and construction management services for subway and roadway tunnels, consulting or the cities of London (UK), Ottawa and Toronto (CAN), New York City, Washington, Dallas-Fort Worth.
Gerhard has produced a large volume of publications, sharing his knowledge and research, including computation methods for underground structures (i.e., Finite Element methods and Capacity Limit Curves) and patented construction techniques for tunneling in urban areas (i.e., Doorframe Slab and Barrel Vault Method) and under rivers (i.e., Modified Doorframe Slab Method).
Throughout his career, Gerhard has recognized the importance of mentoring the next generation of engineers. He has lectured, sponsored internships and trained numerous geotechnical professionals. Gerhard is currently developing a comprehensive book about NATM tunnelling, working with other highly respected international experts of the tunneling industry.
RELATED: 2022 ITA Tunnelling Awards Presented
Comments are closed here.