12/02/20 – Daily Transcript Staff Report
San Diego-based Gafcon, Inc. on Tuesday announced the final steel beam has been placed on the two-story, 67,098-square-foot education building at Canyon High School in Anaheim.
Gafcon is managing the construction project for Orange Unified School District.
The $42.5 million project includes the new science, technology, engineering and mathematics building and the conversion of an existing administration building into a new food-services and kitchen facility.
Other elements of the project are a new entry in the campus' multi-purpose building; a student parking lot and drop-off expansion; upgraded utility, technology, data and communication infrastructure; and Americans with Disabilities Act upgrades.
"These 12 new classrooms and laboratories at Canyon High School will inspire learning in OUSD students for decades to come," Gafcon senior project manager Michael Lengyel said in a statement. "We are proud to partner with OUSD and happy to have provided creative and strategic solutions that contributed to more than $1.5 million in savings for the District."
Those savings were delivered in several ways:
- By implementing the use of ConXtech modular steel framing system, about $500,000 in materials costs and inspections were saved, as was about six weeks of construction.
- Using one bid package in the design-bid-build model, instead of four as originally planned, created cost savings for the bid preparation, contractor general conditions and overhead. It also meant only one general contractor — not four — was needed onsite.
- The use of a temporary modular kitchen facility instead of a temporary modular building to house the school's administrative staff during construction resulted in a cost savings of about $900,000.
The final beam was signed by students, staff and administrators, as well as community members and elected officials who supported the project.
"The topping out of the Canyon High School S.T.E.M. complex is a momentous occasion for the Orange Unified community," Superintendent Gunn Marie Hansen said. "As superintendent, I couldn't be more pleased to see the progress being made on the beautiful, top-notch facilities that our students, staff and residents deserve."
Gafcon worked in collaboration with OUSD, Swinerton Builders and the architects at CannonDesign.
"The Canyon High School S.T.E.M. center is truly a transformational project," said Scott Harvey, the district's executive director of administrative services. "This amazing 67,098-square-foot building will create a new front door for the campus, house our student support services and create a single point of entry that will keep our students safe. I am extremely proud to be a part of this historical addition to the campus."
