The new Derry Township Community Center in Hershey, Pa., provides much needed space for community recreational programs. Opened in June 2022, the 90,000 square foot community center features a gymnasium, fitness center, 25-yard indoor competitive lap pool, indoor warm water leisure pool, outdoor pool, senior center, teen room, and a variety of classroom and multi-use spaces.

Metl-Span insulated metal panels (IMPs) were specified and installed as a part of the walls and roofing on the Derry Community Center.

CHM Contracting LLC of Reading, Pa., installed approximately 56,000 square feet of 6-inch-thick CFR roof panel, 42 inches wide with a 22-gauge Slate Gray exterior and a 24-gauge Regal Gray interior. The project also included 24,000 square feet of 6-inch-thick CF wall panels, 42 inches wide with a 22-gauge Tahoe Blue exterior and a 24-gauge Regal Gray interior. A Metl-Span single-skin PBU panel was installed in some of the masonry areas, a 26-gauge Regal Gray panel.

The 42-inch Metl-Span panels allowed for a speedier building enclosure.

“The prominent feature of this facility is the roofing area,” says Steve Chando, Vice President at CHM Contracting LLC of Reading, Pa. “There’s a big part of the building where the roof pitch is 6:12. The roofing over the pool is 2:12, so you can see a lot of roofing as you pull up. It really looks impressive.”

Chando says CHM Contracting installed about 85 percent of the building enclosure on the project, including the insulated metal wall and roof panels, the single-skin metal wall panels, the composite metal panels and the TPO roofing.

“This is one of the largest Metl-Span projects we’ve been a part of,” Chando says. “It’s a great looking building. The Regal Gray, Slate Gray and Tahoe Blue panels, all look great.”

“As the architect for Derry Township’s new 90,000 square foot community recreation center, which includes two indoor pools, we had to balance the programmatic needs of the residents with the township’s budget,” says Jonathan Trump, RA, Senior Associate and Project Manager at Kimmel Bogrette Architecture + Site of Blue Bell, Pa., “Indoor pools are an interior environment challenge with the need to keep temperature and humidity in an intricate balance so that the spaces are comfortable in both the heat of summer and the cold of winter.

“When the mechanical systems don’t function properly, condensation and mold can quickly become a problem and cause serious damage to the structure. Using insulated metal wall and roof panels as part of the pool envelope help mitigate exterior temperature extremes, making it easier for the mechanical systems to function properly. They are also cost-effective and install quickly.”

Trump says insulated metal panels allow the dew point to happen within the rigid insulation, so the risk of condensation is greatly reduced. Plus, installing one panel, with interior and exterior faces, allows for substantial cost savings over other labor-intensive, built-up systems.

“Since the project design employs architectural features and forms that are characteristic of the building’s rural setting, the insulated roof panel joints provide a standing seam look,” Trump says. “The wall panels selected provide a board and batten aesthetic at no additional cost.”