PHOENIX — McCarthy Building Companies recently began construction on an extensive renovation of Northern Arizona University's (NAU) Science Annex in Flagstaff, Arizona.

The $12 million renovation project includes a complete remodel of the third and fourth floors of the 73,000-square-foot Science Annex facility, which is located in the North Campus Science Corridor. The 34,000-square-foot space is being converted from chemistry laboratories to an open office workspace where collaboration will be a major focus. The scope of work includes exterior glazing, replacement of mechanical systems, the addition of a fire sprinkler system, new electrical service and distribution and the addition of a new elevator.

"This is an important project for our Flagstaff campus, and we are very pleased to be working with McCarthy Building Companies," said Daniel Okoli, NAU's Vice President for Capital Planning and Campus Operations at NAU. "Their work on other NAU projects has been exceptional, and they continue to maintain a strong reputation in the construction industry."

In addition togeneral contractor McCarthy Building Companies, the project team includes architect HDR Inc. The Science Annex renovation project is slated for completion in May 2019.

"We're pleased to be partnering with Northern Arizona University on this extensive renovation project, which represents McCarthy's first major project on the NAU campus," said Bryan Kuster, Vice President of Operations with McCarthy Building Companies' Southwest division. "We have an established track record of successful higher education projects in Arizona, and we look forward to continuing our partnership with NAU."

To date McCarthy has completed both new construction and renovation projects to support NAU's College of Engineering, Forestry and Natural Sciences, including the Department of Physics and Astronomy, Department of Biological Sciences, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry and the School of Communications.