Contractor: E.B. Frank Middle School construction moving ahead; geothermal wells nearly complete
Summary
Metcon project staff told the Lenoir County Board of Education the E.B. Frank Middle School construction is progressing, with masonry, steel and roof planks being installed and about 187 geothermal wells drilled with roughly 20 remaining; contractor said several slab pours are scheduled and key milestones are ahead of schedule.
Metcon project representatives told the Lenoir County Board of Education on Jan. 5 that construction at the new E.B. Frank Middle School is progressing on schedule, with major structural work underway and systems being installed.
Contract staff described masonry and concrete masonry unit (CMU) walls already in place for multiple classroom wings and common areas and said crews are installing gym joists and steel decks. "We've got most of the walls, CMU walls up in the band, chorus area, in the center of the building," a Metcon representative said, adding the contractor expected gym walls to be complete in about a week and precast roof planks to be installed beginning the following day.
On the mechanical side, the contractor reported extensive geothermal installation work. "There's a a 187 total wells today. They have about 20 left," a Metcon representative said, describing the 300-foot boreholes that will serve the building's thermal-transfer system. The representative said crews were using multiple rigs and that slab pours for classroom wings and ancillary areas were scheduled across the coming week.
The contractor said the team had mobilized roughly a dozen subcontractors on-site — masonry, concrete, mechanical, electrical and plumbing among them — and noted precast deliveries and steel mobilization would be phased to allow continued interior work. "We're really kind of getting into the main... three-dimensional going up, closing in," the Metcon representative said.
District leaders thanked the contractor for progress updates and said staff had toured the site recently. The superintendent told the board the project team and the district remain focused on schedule and quality as the work transitions from foundation and slab work into full building enclosure.
Next steps include scheduled slab pours, completion of the remaining geothermal wells, installation of precast roof planks and ongoing coordination among subcontractors. Board members were invited to contact the project team with technical questions.
The presentation drew no formal board action beyond the update; the project will return to the board as necessary for contract or contingency approvals.
