The Lafarge Gypsum Wallboard Facility is one of the largest wallboard manufacturing facilities in the United States. The site spans 85 acres and houses state-of-the-art equipment to produce synthetic gypsum for wallboard production. The plant has the capacity to produce over 500 linear feet of half-inch wallboard per minute, totaling 900 million square feet per year. Environmentally friendly practices include the utilization of a by-product from Seminole Power (flue-gas derivative) and the recycling of collected materials.

It was important to the client that the plant be completed to conduct trial runs before the end of the year and capitalize on potential tax savings. The PCL team proposed a project plan timeline that was two months faster than any previous wallboard manufacturing facility constructed by Lafarge, surpassing the industry project schedule standard. Completed in a mere twelve months, the facility was operational two months ahead of schedule. Electrical and equipment installation was expedited, allowing for the first successful trials to take place in mid-December. This marked a significant achievement in surpassing the client’s ambitious expectations.

Not only was the plant delivered ahead of schedule, but also under budget. Value engineering efforts resulted in the reduction of $3 million in construction costs. One such change included a post-tensioned concrete storage dome in lieu of a standard metal storage building. The change resulted in savings of $700,000 and increased the storage capacity despite having a smaller footprint.