McCarthy Building Companies and Phelps Health Celebrate Topping Out of New Emergency Department

McCarthy Building Companies, Inc. and Phelps Health Medical Clinic and Hospital celebrated the placement of the final structural beam (known as “topping out”) on the Emergency Department addition and renovation. On Sept. 22, Phelps Health leadership addressed a gathered crowd, underscoring the community's investment in the project and the growing need for expanded emergency care in the region.

The topping-out event honored the completion of the new Phelps Health Emergency Department’s steel framework and recognized the hard work of McCarthy’s steel team, which erected approximately 616 tons of steel in less than three months.

“We're incredibly proud of our crews for that achievement and inspired to see how deeply this community and Phelps Health leadership have embraced the project,” said McCarthy Senior Project Manager Tim Kehr. “There is a real need for these new services in Rolla, and McCarthy is here to help build a facility with greater capacity and resources that fulfill the region’s healthcare needs.”

With the steel structure complete, the project team will shift its focus to concrete slabs and the building’s façade.

Located in the Ozark Highlands, the Phelps Health Rolla main medical campus is the largest rural-serving hospital in south-central Missouri. Its new emergency department will nearly double the current department’s footprint, expanding to 38,000 square feet with 32 treatment beds, observation rooms and larger behavioral health spaces. New services for the department will introduce onsite imaging, such as CT, radiology and ultrasound. The project also includes an added 40,000 square feet of shell space — reserved space for future customization as Phelps Health’s patient and staff needs evolve.

The ceremony drew Phelps Health staff, McCarthy leadership and the project team, subcontractors, and members of the Rolla community, continuing a tradition of public engagement that has followed the project since groundbreaking.

Ahead of the ceremony, the beam was moved into the hospital's main lobby, where Phelps Health staff, patients and community members added their signatures. Adorned with those signatures, the American flag and a lone evergreen tree, the beam stood as a symbol of the partnership between contractor, client and community.

About McCarthy

McCarthy Building Companies, Inc. (McCarthy) is a leading U.S. construction company with more than 160 years of experience delivering complex projects across commercial, institutional, industrial and civil utility infrastructure markets. 

Guided by its commitment as a community builder, McCarthy is passionate about investing in the long-term success of the communities where its employee-owners live, work and build.

As a 100% employee-owned company with more than 8,000 salaried employees and craft professionals nationwide, McCarthy is consistently recognized as a Best Place to Work and Healthiest Employer. With 19 offices across the U.S., McCarthy is an Inc. 5000 company (Aug. 2026) and ranked the 22nd largest contractor by Engineering News-Record (May 2026). For more information about McCarthy visit www.mccarthy.com, catch up on current projects with McCarthy Insights blog, or follow McCarthy on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube.