ORANGE, Calif./PASADENA, Calif. – C.W. Driver Companies, a premier builder serving California since 1919, has broken ground on the 140,000-square-foot Center for Science and Technology at Chapman University, located at 450 North Center Street in Orange, California. With a total project value of $130 million, this project marks the second state-of-the-art higher education science building C.W. Driver has broken ground on since the beginning of 2016 and the second partnership with Chapman University and architect, AC Martin Partners, Inc. Upon completion in the fall of 2018, the facility will house Chapman’s Schmid College of Science and Technology.

“We have seen an increased demand for modernized science facilities in higher education, and because of our expertise in this field, we have been able to provide multiple institutions with the technologically advanced buildings needed to equip the next generation of science and technology professionals,” said C.W. Driver’s senior vice president, Mike Byrne, LEED AP. “Understanding Chapman’s desire for growth and development in this arena as well, we are thrilled to partner with the university and AC Martin Partners again to produce a facility to meet the need.”

Consisting of structural steel with a combination of brick, metal panel and curtain wall skin, the new building will be a flexible space that promotes learning and growth. State-of-the-art teaching and research labs will largely occupy the three-story building, in addition to faculty and graduate student offices, an 800-seat rooftop stadium seating for viewing the existing football field and a 145,000-square-foot subterranean parking structure is included. The existing parking structure is an expansion for the adjacent structure located beneath the football field.

During the preconstruction phase, C.W. Driver used BIM modeling to electronically construct the building to identify any potential challenges and implement solutions as the team works against a zero-lot line. To minimize potential disruptions to the campus while the university is in session and residents in the surrounding neighborhood, C.W. Driver also created a logistics plan to help mitigate loud noise and fume emissions during the construction process.

“The Center for Science and Technology will be a remarkable fulfillment of Chapman’s commitment to enhancing science education and serving the needs of our communities,” said Chapman University President Jim Doti. “When complete, the new Center for Science and Technology will significantly add to our program and elevate the college to a new level, placing Chapman among an elite group of teaching and research universities – both nationally and internationally.”

Along with Byrne, the C.W. Driver project management team members include Brian Rush, project executive; Dave McGlothlin, senior project manager; Brandon Teston, project manager; Jim Broome, senior superintendent; Jared Brown, assistant superintendent; and Giovanni Turi, assistant project manager; and Ryan Walker and Sergio Gonzalez, project engineers.

This project joins a number of other projects C.W. Driver has constructed within the higher education sciences field in California, including The Center for Science, Technology and Health at Biola University in La Mirada, which C.W. Driver broke ground on in February 2016; the Life Sciences Building at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles; the Science Building at Saddleback College in Mission Viejo; and the Segerstrom Science Center at Azusa Pacific University in Azusa.