

The Grande Prairie K-8 Public School is a newly constructed facility for elementary and middle-school classes, made to hold up to 600 students. The school features a sloped canopy supported by glulam columns that clearly establishes the main entrance and provides a safe and sheltered entryway.
CAST CONNEX was initially contacted by Stantec during the project’s design phase to provide advice related to the use of cast steel connections for the timber columns at the project’s feature entranceway. CAST CONNEX was ultimately engaged by Western Archrib to engineer and supply cast steel and steel connections related to the project’s timberwork. After discussion, the decision was made to use CAST CONNEX® Universal Pin Connectors™ + Architectural Tapers™ at the ends of the glulam columns. This required the modification the Architectural Tapers for connection to the timber via a knife-plate connection.
Owner: Grande Prairie Public School District
Architects: Stantec
Structural Engineers: Stantec
General Contractor: Clark Builders
Timber Supplier: Western Archrib