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Walk through the mechanical room this week and you can hear something new. Water is in the chill water side of the system. After months of installing boilers, pumps, piping, and the chiller itself, the new infrastructure is filled and ready to circulate. The project is moving from installation to startup, one piece of equipment at a time.

What's Happening

The new chiller, boilers, and pumps are all set in the mechanical room, and the chill water side is now filled with water. P1 is finishing the controls on the pumps and chiller this week, the last step before equipment begins running. As systems are commissioned, some cooling may come online in parts of the building.

The sanctuary air handling unit (AHU-2) is installed. Getting it into place above the Serve Center took some careful work, since the existing space was tighter than expected. With the unit set, only a small amount of framing remains once the ceiling grid crew returns to that area.

Vertical stack fan coil units for the west side of the building arrived last week and are now staged in the rooms where they will be installed. Two final horizontal classroom units remain on reorder and are expected to ship around June 4 to 6. With those, the equipment list will be complete.

On the east side of the building, pressure testing on the piping from the Serve Center through the pantry area is complete. That piping is ready for insulation. Office area rough-in (sheet metal and piping) is on track to finish this week, with P1 working Tuesday through Friday for the Memorial Day schedule.

What to Expect

You may continue to notice more fan noise around the building this week as equipment moves into startup mode. New systems run in factory-set conditions during commissioning, and the noise quiets down once they reach normal occupied mode.

Memorial Day week work continues through Friday, with focus on finishing office area rough-in and getting controls and insulation in place. Members visiting the church office area this week may find limited access; please call the church number to coordinate.

Looking Ahead

Week of June 1: AHU-3 and AHU-4 reinstall on the second floor; ductwork install continues in Rooms 209 to 216.

Early June: Final two horizontal fan coil units arrive and get installed.

End of June: Major completion target for the project.

Mid-July: Final closeout and project documentation.

By the Numbers

As of May 27, 113 households have committed to the Tomorrow First campaign, with $1,845,113 pledged toward our $1.75 million goal. To date, $958,495.15 has been received, or 55 percent of the goal. Every gift moves this work forward and equips our church for the ministry God is calling us into.

How to Give

Give online at mcphersonfirst.org/give (select "Tomorrow First"), by mail to 1200 E Kansas Ave, McPherson, KS 67460, or place gifts in the worship offering plate marked "Tomorrow First."

What started in the basement and on the roof is now filled with water, set into place, and almost ready to run. Each week the work moves from rough installation toward quiet, dependable operation, the kind of unglamorous faithfulness that makes ministry possible. Thank you for the prayers, the gifts, and the patience that keep this project moving forward.