Carolina Collegiate High School – Phase 1

Carolina Collegiate High School converted the first floor of a three-story office building in south Durham into a new high school campus. Edmondson Engineers designed the mechanical, electrical, plumbing and fire protection systems for the Phase 1 interior renovation with DTW Architects & Planners, and provided construction administration through final punch in summer 2026.

The design turns open office space into a Great Hall, makerspace, robotics lab, science lab, classrooms and a two-story lobby with a feature stair. New VAV terminal units and exposed, painted ductwork serve spaces with very different occupancy loads, from a Great Hall for 250 people to small special education rooms. In the Great Hall and makerspace, distributed air-cleaning units let the design use the ASHRAE 62.1 IAQ Procedure, bringing those rooms' outdoor air requirement in line with the rest of the floor. That saved the rooftop units from having to deliver 30–35% outdoor air just to satisfy two ventilation-heavy rooms. Pendant fixtures light the learning spaces, linear and sculptural fixtures highlight the stair, and new power, data, security and fire alarm systems tie into the building's existing infrastructure, which stayed in service for the rest of the building.