New Camp Buildings Model Green Construction for Southern California School Children

Camp Cuyamaca Dorms and Lodge Use Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs) to Meet Design Challenges of Mountainous Location

San Diego, Calif., March 31, 2010 – Designed to meet the LEED Gold certification standard of the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design green building rating program, Southern California’s Camp Cuyamaca is believed to have the first outdoor educational buildings in the region developed using Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs). The panels from Premier Building Systems, Fife, Washington, are an advanced building technique using prefabricated insulated wall, roof and floor components in place of conventional stud or "stick frame" construction. Premier SIPs create tight buildings for high energy efficiency, and help meet other green building goals such as improving indoor air quality and reducing jobsite construction waste by up to two thirds.

Davy Architecture, San Diego, California, designed two dormitory buildings and a lodge at the camp to serve as examples of sustainable design and good stewardship of natural resources. The project also included renovating existing dorms, craft buildings, and the dining hall and infirmary, as well as other site improvements.

Located in the Peninsular mountain range east of San Diego, the camp’s high-altitude site created a challenging building environment. “The extreme mountain climate calls for maximum insulation to dampen the temperature swings,” says Ric Davy, principal, Davy Architecture. “We chose Premier SIPs because they help seal out air leaks better than other building methods. Also, because they’re made offsite, that helped us minimize field labor time and costs for this public works project.”

Camp Cuyamaca serves 6th grade school children in San Diego County by providing a week of outdoor environmental education on a 19-acre campus in the Cuyamaca Rancho State Park. The County Office of Education's Outdoor Education branch operates the camp.

About Premier Building Systems

Premier Building Systems, a division of Carlisle Construction Materials, leads the construction industry in the research, development and manufacturing of high-performance, energy-efficient structural insulated panels and innovative construction framing materials. Headquartered in Fife, Washington, Premier operates manufacturing facilities in Fife and Phoenix, Arizona. For more information about Premier’s products and services, call (800) 275-7086 or visit www.pbssips.com

About Davy Architecture

Founded in 1984, Davy Architecture is a San Diego based general architectural practice. Through the years the firm has completed a broad portfolio of projects, servings the needs of private and public sector clients with a variety of planning and design services for all building types. For more information about Davy Architecture, please call (619) 238-3811 or visit www.davyarchitecture.com