HOLLISTON, MA — The new Doherty Memorial High School recently opened its doors to students in Worcester, Massachusetts, with Wayne J. Griffin Electric, Inc. (Griffin Electric) installing all electrical and telecommunications work on site. This new, four-building school spans 425,000 square feet and replaces the former school, which was built in 1966 and was becoming outdated, overcrowded, and unsuitable for learning.

Featuring 102,000 square feet of classroom space, more than double that of the former school, Doherty Memorial surpasses energy-efficient standards and will meet requirements for the Leadership in Energy and Environmental (LEED) Silver certification. The new facility has allowed the school to expand its offerings of vocational options to students. Construction craft labor, marketing and finance, as well as programming and web development are some of these new vocational options that students at Doherty will have access to.

An area electrical subcontractor throughout New England and the Southeast for over 45 years, Griffin Electric has long been active with many local schools and organizations in order to promote construction and the apprenticeship pathway as a viable career option. As part of the project team, Griffin is helping to play a part in exposing new audiences to options beyond the college route.

Griffin Electric installed power, lighting and lighting controls, a generator system, and a complete solar photovoltaic system on site. Other responsibilities of the Griffin team included installing systems for access control, fire alarm, security, as well as closed-circuit television and audio/visual. Griffin Electric was able to leverage prefabricated in-wall electrical rough and overhead electrical rough to the projects’ benefit.

Other members of the project team included general contractor, Fontaine Bros., Inc. and Lamoureux Pagano Associates | Architects, both of Worcester. The electrical engineer was ART Engineering Corporation, also of Worcester.