Back in September, Facilities Planning and Management (FPM) prepared a list of future deferred maintenance projects for the campus. I am excited to announce FPM has purchased a new chiller for the east chiller loop of the campus and work will begin Jan. 23. The funding for this project was made possible from a onetime allowance from the Board of Trustees for decreasing the backlog of deferred maintenance on the campus.

The chiller project will begin with demolition of the old chiller and the cooling tower. During February, work will include structural steel install, electrical work, and new piping installs. The new chiller and cooling tower will be delivered on Feb. 28. The cooling tower startup is scheduled for March 22. The chiller start up is scheduled for April 19.

This will cause some issues in the loading dock and small parking lot located at the north end of the Harmon Fine Arts Center. A crane will be used to unload and set the new equipment, and a dumpster will be in same area for construction debris. Please email me with any concerns or issues during the completion of this project: jolene.schmidt@drake.edu

—Jolene Schmidt, Director of Operations & Support Services