SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California Association of Sheet Metal and Air Conditioning Contractors National Association (California SMACNA) presented the 2003 Tom Guilfoy Memorial Architectural Sheet Metal Award to Custom Metal Fabricators Inc. (CFM) for the project, Cerritos Millennium Library, in Cerritos, Calif.

A 30-inch by 40-inch framed architectural photo of the project was shipped to their office in Orange.

“This is the first time crystallized titanium has been used in this magnitude on a building in the United States,” said Paul Keohane, president of Custom Metal Fabricators. “This is also the first time we ever received a $500,000 deposit for a public works job.”

For this project, CMF said it fabricated and installed 40,000 square feet of exterior titanium panels and 3,500 square feet of clear-coated interior titanium panels. This project involved approximately 20,000 man-hours of work and was a $3 million sheet metal project using over $1 million worth of titanium.

According to Keohane, this project also involved the installation of 20-gauge galvanized skin for backing onto the building structure and installation of the exterior titanium panels with 24-gauge stainless steel clips. Exterior panels (24-inch-square) were fabricated and were sent out to be crystallized.

The project also included interior titanium panels for the inside lobby; custom fabricated and installed titanium cones placed throughout at computer desks; 304 stainless steel flat supports and railings in the circulation desk area of the library; a one-of-a-kind outdoor 16 gauge brushed stainless steel plasma screen, with air conditioning ports and fans built in to the structure. Other items fabricated and installed included: stainless steel floor rail, bronze etched desk front which was fabricated by others, stainless steel escalator panels, and exterior aluminum louvers.

This project was ultimately chosen because of the various items that were fabricated, the craftsmanship involved, and the variety and complexity of the project.

The Guilfoy Memorial Architectural Sheet Metal Award was established in 1996 to recognize the California SMACNA company whose project best epitomizes the quality and craftsmanship of architectural sheet metal work set by Guilfoy Cornice Works. Custom Metal Fabricators also won this award in 1999 and 2001 for projects Colburn School of Performing Arts in Los Angeles and the “Award Weiners” at Disney’s Hollywood Backlot in Anaheim, respectively.

Next year’s award will be presented at the 38th Annual Convention at Hyatt Grand Champions in Indian Wells, Calif., on April 14-17, 2004.

Publication date: 06/02/2003