Manheim Township School District Builds Onsite Employee Health Clinic

Challenge: Clinic Construction Requires Careful Project Delivery

Lancaster, Pennsylvania’s Manheim Township School District recognized the need for a project centered on long-term cost avoidance and enhanced employee support. Rising healthcare costs were exerting financial pressures on both the district’s operating budget and its employees’ pockets. To mitigate this pressure, the district invested in an on-site clinic designed to provide seamless access to premium healthcare. Focused on improving both the physical and mental wellness of the district’s 600+ insured employees, this proactive approach would ultimately drive down healthcare costs for individuals while securing substantial savings for the school district.

To ensure predictable healthcare investments and avoid future claims, the Manheim Township School District established a five-year partnership with Penn Medicine using a fixed per-employee fee structure. The district planned to house the new clinic within its District Office. However, the project faced a unique hurdle: The building was fully occupied and shared a footprint with a connected elementary school. Navigating construction in a busy administrative office and an adjacent school required a meticulous execution strategy.

District leaders needed an approach that would strictly control costs, satisfy the Pennsylvania Procurement Code and protect the daily routines of staff and students alike.

Solution: Gordian’s Cooperative Job Order Contracting Amplifies Transparency, Collaboration

Given their overlapping objectives, district leaders decided to use Gordian’s Cooperative Job Order Contracting (JOC) to procure construction of the clinic. Accessed via the Keystone Purchasing Network, a regional purchasing cooperative, Cooperative JOC provided the flexibility, transparency and cost controls necessary to complete the project.

A novel and efficient approach to construction project delivery, Gordian’s Job Order Contracting is a collaboration engine that turns project owners and contractors into partners. There are a few reasons for this.

One is that Gordian JOC programs are predicated on a Unit Price Book called a Construction Task Catalog®. Researched by our team of experts, this legally binding document contains over 275,000 line items informed by our 35+ years of implementing and overseeing JOC programs. All parties see what the costs are, and the costs do not change, not even for emergency work. This transparency eliminates suspicions about whether the owner is paying a fair price for construction and whether the contractor is earning a fair wage for their work.

Additionally, all Gordian contracts are performance-based, and owners are under no obligation to award a given construction volume to any one contractor. This creates an incentive for contractors to act as an extension of the owner’s team and deliver extraordinary service.

Finally, collaboration is baked into Gordian’s JOC process. From the outset of a project, owners, contractors and subs, and other stakeholders join together to walk the site, discuss ways to extend the project budget, generate solutions to potential issues and strategize to ensure the owner’s expectations are met.

Result: Maintaining Community Health Today and Into the Future

The Manheim Township School District awarded the project to Lobar Associates, a Pennsylvania contractor with a successful track record of JOC success, including completing a bevy of improvements for the Harrisburg Housing Authority following the COVID-19 pandemic.

The transformation of a 2,000-square-foot space into a fully functional medical clinic began in February 2025. Work included selective demolition of walls, ceilings and flooring, running new plumbing and electrical lines per the design of the new layout, reworking the existing HVAC/Mechanical system and installing new lighting and finishes, among other tasks. Given that construction took place within a working office, the project required careful phasing and thoughtful, inobtrusive operating procedures.

The scope of the project evolved along the way, no surprise given that it was the first employer-clinic of its kind in the area. Through it all, district leaders, Lobar and Gordian worked closely to ensure the $1 million budget was spent responsibly and in full compliance with the state Procurement Code.

The project wrapped in June 2025, a mere four months from the start. The Manheim Township School District now offers on-site primary care, counseling and wellness services for over 600 employees, with plans to expand in the future. In honor of the project’s community impact and innovative use of JOC, Gordian awarded the district project team and Lobar Associates a 2025 Award of Merit in Job Order Contracting.