The Centene Community Ice Center, a state-of-the-art multi-purpose facility, now serves as a vibrant hub for local ice sports and community activities. This expansive center houses four outdoor rinks and provides a venue for a variety of teams and events, including serving as the new practice home for the St. Louis Blues, as well as hosting the Lindenwood University Women’s and Men’s hockey teams, the St. Louis Lady Cyclones, and various adult and youth hockey leagues and recreational skating activities. Additionally, the facility features two full-service kitchens that support both general concessions and the 314 Social Eats + Drinks restaurant, equipped with make-up air and hood exhaust systems.
Selected by Arco Construction Company, Murphy provided engineering, budget estimating, and construction services focused on ice refrigeration and the general building’s HVAC systems. The selection of the site in 2018, after careful consideration of another location, benefited from Murphy’s robust engineering and construction estimating capabilities, which helped maintain the budgets initially established in 2017.
Murphy’s engineers also conducted energy modeling to ensure the 277,000-square-foot facility met energy code requirements. The HVAC system was designed using a combination of technologies to optimize environmental control and energy efficiency. This included 360 tons of constant volume direct expansion packaged rooftop units with gas heat, 30 tons of dedicated split systems, 85 tons of variable air volume systems with fan terminal units, and 40 tons of direct expansion units with energy recovery enthalpy wheels for locker rooms. Additionally, 60,000 CFM of desiccant dehumidification units were installed to maintain optimal humidity levels in the rinks throughout the year.
In a strategic partnership with B32 Engineering Group, Murphy Company helped devise a cost-effective and timely construction solution. This was achieved by collaborating with M&M Refrigeration Inc. to prefabricate a 480-ton ammonia refrigeration plant skid that included heat recovery for ice production, sub-floor heating, and snow melt systems for ice resurfacing machines. This prefabrication approach not only aligned with the original design intent but also facilitated a faster installation process, compensating for a five-month delay due to weather and design setbacks, and ensuring the project stayed on schedule.
