BUSINESS MEMO: DAM WORK IN PEAK PHASE

Construction of the Olmsted Lock and Dam project will be entering its peak work force phase during the final quarter of this year.

Over the next two months, an additional 300 workers will be added to the project, said a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers official recently.

The job openings will be split between Illinois and Kentucky unions, with workers as far away as 150 miles. Each union has its own process for assigning workers to the Olmsted project.

Work on the project is in its fifth of 10 stages, which is the largest, longest and most labor-intensive of the project. Contractor Atkinson, Dillingham and Lane is building the two new locks and a dam over the next four years at a cost of $223.9 million.

There are now 160 workers on the job, with the work force to increase to 400 to 500 workers within the next year.