NCSD board approves new A/C unit at TJ

Students at Thomas Jefferson Elementary will get a chance to cool off this summer.

During a called board meeting on Wednesday night, the Newton Community School District board voted to purchase a new air conditioning unit for the building. The unit will replace the existing air conditioning unit which failed last year.

Administrators had budgeted $125,000 to replace the air conditioning unit at Thomas Jefferson during the 2020 fiscal year, part of the 10-year plan. After inspecting the unit last fall, Jack Suttek, maintenance supervisor for NCSD, said it was beyond repair and would require a total replacement. Many of the HVAC systems in place across the district were replaced during the 1999-2000 school year, and Suttek said with a shelf life of approximately 20 years most of the units are nearing the end of their life. The total cost of the unit and the installation will be $69,403. Suttek noted that number is lower than the $75,000 estimate the district had initially planned on. The funds to replace the unit will come from SAVE funds, the local option sales and services tax for school infrastructure.

The district plans to replace the unit during this year’s Spring Break, set to begin Friday for students across the district. Making sure the air conditioning system is functioning at Thomas Jefferson has been a priority for the district NCSD Superintendent Bob Callaghan said.

“We’ve been planning for this since last fall,” Callaghan said.

On Wednesday, Suttek told board members after researching different options his department decided they wanted to replace the existing Trane unit with another one from the same company. That move will allow the district to save an estimated $10,000 by eliminating the need to make changes to the building’s electrical, piping and ductwork systems. The new unit, a Trane Air Handler, is designed to integrate with the school’s existing mechanical equipment, which will ease the installation process. The cost of the new unit is $34,609.

Even though the district will save money by using a unit manufactured by the same company they’ll have to hire an outside contractor to install the unit. While district employees typically service all of the HVAC equipment, Callaghan said the district will enter into a bid process to have a company replace the air conditioning unit. The replacement process will require a crane and will have to be done by the company that supplies the unit in order to qualify for the warranty process. A contractor will need a crane to remove the existing air conditioning unit from the building’s roof and to set the new unit down in its place.

Three companies bid on the project, A.J. Allen, Warnick and Reeves and Dickerson Mechanical. Of the three A.J. Allen had the lowest bid at $34,794 to install the new unit and remove the existing air conditioner. Suttek recommended the board select A.J. Allen as the lowest bidder, and he noted they have experience working with the district.

“A.J. Allen has done quite a bit of work for us in the past, they’re top notch quality,” Suttek said.

Contact David Dolmage at 641-792-3121 ext. 6532 or ddolmage@newtondailynews.com