Barletta Engineering is a Canton, Massachusetts-based engineering and construction company with more than a century of experience delivering complex infrastructure projects. Now in its fourth generation of family ownership, Barletta Engineering operates through two primary entities: Barletta Engineering Corporation and Barletta Heavy Division, Inc. Together, these divisions support a broad portfolio that includes water and wastewater treatment facilities, energy plants, commercial construction, environmental remediation, roadways, bridges, and public transportation infrastructure.
With approximately 90 professional employees and a fleet of more than 300 certified pieces of equipment, the firm works closely with public agencies and transportation authorities across the region. Barletta Engineering maintains pre-qualification with organizations such as the Massachusetts Department of Transportation and the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. Its work has been recognized by industry groups, including the Construction Management Association of America, reflecting a focus on safety, coordination, and precision in highly regulated environments such as active airfields.
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Managing Construction Work Around Active Flight Schedules
Airport runway repairs operate under restrictions far stricter than those used for regular road construction. Flight schedules, airfield safety requirements, and constant coordination with airport officials determine how crews enter and exit the airfield and when pavement can reopen. Teams must follow fixed work windows, specialized movement procedures, and rigorously enforced safety protocols.
Airports determine the specific work windows allowed for airfield access. Most runway projects occur overnight between the final evening departure and the first morning arrival, leaving crews with tight timeframes. These windows can shift or be canceled based on weather or operational needs. Supervisors therefore schedule crews according to the airport’s real-time plan rather than fixed start times.
Airfield safety rules define work zones and limit how close crews can be to active runways and taxiways. The airport sets the boundaries, installs barriers, and controls access. If a contractor needs to exceed those limits, the airport must approve it in advance, and the control tower may be involved if aircraft movements are affected.
Moving heavy equipment adds another layer of control. The airport-approved plan identifies where crews stage machines and the routes they use. The airport authorizes any crossing of aircraft movement areas, and airport operations arrange route holds and escorts, involving the control tower when needed.
Beyond ground movement, pilots must always be able to read the airfield clearly. Crews place barricades, temporary lighting, and signs precisely so pilots in the cockpit can understand any shortened runways or changed taxi routes at a glance. These visual aids follow federal aviation standards.
Runway pavements are engineered to withstand aircraft weight, braking forces, and touchdown impact—not the conditions of normal roadways. They must meet strict specifications for friction, drainage, and compaction. Some projects require grooving or surface treatments to improve wet-weather traction and limit hydroplaning. These performance standards guide both paving methods and final finishing steps.
Airport owners rarely treat major runway repairs as purely reactive work. Airport owners plan resurfacing around pavement condition and aircraft loads, often on a roughly 15-year cycle depending on climate and traffic. That timetable lets contractors line up materials, sequence the work, and secure approvals months in advance. Airport owners typically pre-schedule and manage runway rehabilitation to minimize unplanned closures and operational disruptions.
During active construction, crews follow the inspection schedule set in the airport-approved plan. They document escorts, check barricades and access controls, and track tools to reduce night-operation risks. Before flights resume, teams remove debris and verify that the work area is safe. These real-time procedures help prevent runway incursions, misplaced equipment, and foreign object debris on the airfield.
When tasks are finished, the contractor submits the day’s paperwork, and airport operations inspects the area. The airport updates its official status and gives the go-ahead (with the control tower involved as needed) before aircraft movement resumes. Pilots and controllers restart movements only after airport operations records that approval and the control tower restores movement control.
Contractors who thrive in airfield environments go beyond following the plan; they anticipate where it might break down. Teams work with airport operators to map potential handoff gaps, runway reactivation issues, and weather-driven schedule changes, and to build clear contingency procedures into each shift. On active airfields, resilience is not only about buffers; it comes from planning how systems could fail and still completing the night’s work before the morning arrivals.
About Barletta Engineering
Barletta Engineering is a family-owned construction and engineering firm headquartered in Canton, Massachusetts, now operating in its fourth generation. Through Barletta Engineering Corporation and Barletta Heavy Division, Inc., the company delivers commercial, utility, transportation, and environmental projects across the region. With a strong emphasis on safety, coordination, and regulatory compliance, Barletta Engineering works with public agencies and transportation authorities to complete complex infrastructure projects on time and within budget.
