McKEON distributor Specified Building Products worked alongside Lavallee Brensinger Architects and Bauen Corporation on the new Oyster River Middle School in Durham, NH.
Specified Building Products first became involved with the new 146,900 SF Oyster River Middle School in 2019 when they provided budget pricing for the design/build project. In March of 2020 David Dodge, VP of Business & Code Development at McKEON, provided an alternate methods letter for the project. It led to the regulatory approval of the use of load-bearing opening protectives placed on the horizontal plane. In July of 2020 SBP was awarded the job!
According to Steve Laput, Lavallee Brensinger Project Architect, a top priority of the school district was to build a net-zero facility. However upon completion it was, in fact, net-positive. This is due in part to the use of low-energy LED lights, smart-light controls, and natural lighting.
Bringing daylight into the building while meeting building code requirements and maintaining the project budget was a challenge McKEON could help overcome. In June of 2021 SBP installed two 23′-10″ wide x 17′-3″ high Auto-Set® H200s in the school. These horizontal fire shutters allowed natural light into the building and reduced construction costs!
The building’s energy infrastructure underlying these components is even more important. “A high-performance exterior envelope combined with the geothermal system substantially reduces the building’s heating and cooling loads which results in a smaller mechanical system and therefore reduces energy usage. Furthermore, an extensive solar photovoltaic system consisting of roof-mounted solar panels and a structured solar array over a parking lot will generate and send power back into the electrical grid,” said Laput. To learn more about this sustainable project check it out on Lavallee Brensinger’s website.
The grand opening of the highly anticipated brand-new school was in August of 2022, just in time to welcome students and staff to the facility!