Write & Company
Bolingbrook High School
Salas O’Brien supported the architectural and construction team by providing cutting-edge engineering services for the first LEED-certified high school in Illinois.
Our client
With offices in Chicago and Darien, this architectural, engineering, and construction firm has spent 75 years creating exceptional, sustainable buildings for their clients. Write & Company and their 185 professional employees provide their clients with expertise in corporate and commercial markets, federal and local government markets, various education markets, and parks and recreation markets. This client places a special focus on sustainability in their projects, delivering exceptional buildings while still protecting and enhancing the environment.
Project highlights
Their challenge
This high school was in need of a major upgrade in size and capacity to meet the needs of their growing student body. Our client wanted a facility that would organize 3,600-students into two separate academic and fine arts buildings while at the same time incorporating sustainable environmental features such as an outdoor, landscaped amphitheater for the school’s large activities, performances, and gatherings.
Our solution
Salas O’Brien was engaged to join the architectural and construction team and design a solution for this client. We provided HVAC, electrical, mechanical, plumbing, and fire protection design services for this two-floor, 550,000-square-foot new construction project. To meet our client’s sustainability and environmental requirements, our design included special features such as carbon dioxide monitoring in the ventilation system, systems commissioning, and an indoor air quality management system. In addition, to provide make-up water for the cooling tower system, our plan also included an innovation in design credit for a condensate recovery system that utilizes the condensate from the air handling units.
The results
Thanks to our team’s work on this project, Bolingbrook High School is now the first LEED certified high school in Illinois, and it serves as one of the state’s preeminent examples of public sponsored “green” projects.


