Kossuth supervisors approve quote to retrofit courthouse air handler with QPAC-style unit

Kossuth County supervisors approved a vendor quote to retrofit the courthouse air handler with a QPAC-style arrangement after hearing that the existing air handler has reached the end of its expected service life.

Maintenance staff told the board that the current air handler is about 80 years old and that if it fails the county would lose air on the first and second floors. "It's 80 years old," the maintenance staff member said. Staff described the proposed QPAC solution as five individual blowers mounted in a partitioned section so that the system can run on multiple motors rather than a single large shaft and blower assembly.

A vendor representative told the board the motors are energy-efficient and that the county would "recoup your energy savings in a 2 to 3 year span with these motors." Supervisors asked whether local vendors could provide comparable equipment; staff said the QPAC-style package was uncommon locally and that the vendor was headquartered outside the county and had local service from a regional office.

Supervisors discussed that the vendor quote did not include electrical hookup and estimated electrical connection costs might be in the low thousands; staff said county personnel could perform or supervise the electrical work. A motion to approve the vendor quote carried by voice vote.

No dollar amount for the approved quote was read into the record during the open discussion, and the meeting packet indicated the county believes the purchase is below formal competitive-bid thresholds but is still a significant expenditure. Supervisors requested that future procurements include additional comparables where feasible.