High-Tech and Sustainability Measures at New Facility Help Frozen Food Producer Meet Growing Demand

Solution

Burns & McDonnell was hired by the frozen foods producer to design and build the new facility. The finished building — which is the size of three football fields — includes office space, shipping and receiving docks, and highly automated, state-of-the-art pizza-production equipment capable of making millions of pizzas annually.

The project team assessed expenditures, including energy costs; examined equipment and technology capabilities; and evaluated production demand and flow, both current and projected. The team then opted to implement a design-build project that would deliver a high-quality outcome faster and with more cost certainty than any other delivery approach.

One of the goals of the company’s expansion is to utilize cutting-edge equipment and technology to increase production. It’s anticipated the new facility will become one of the most technologically advanced food manufacturing facilities in the world.

Large manufacturing plants, such as this, often present unique design and construction challenges. To address issues raised because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the expansion includes technology and protocols designed to minimize risks to employee well-being during public health crises. The improvements follow guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and apply key learnings from the coronavirus outbreak, such as implementing design elements that facilitate social distancing and encourage enhanced sanitizing protocols.

Additionally, to help reduce costs and maximize the benefits of environmental measures, our team identified efficiency and sustainability programs that align with the company’s ongoing corporate responsibility commitments.

• A 20-year agreement to purchase renewable energy from a local wind farm.
• With sustainability measures designed into the project, the addition will discharge 10,000 fewer gallons of wastewater per day than it would otherwise.
• Equipment that delivers natural gas efficiencies of 18,000 standard cubic feet annually.

For the large facility to operate efficiently, special design and construction elements had to be incorporated. We worked to identify optimal solutions for incorporating and managing heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems, as well as mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems. As an example, construction crews used an unconventional method of installing the project’s climate control systems. Because of the scale of the structure and the size of the 17,000-pound HVAC systems, helicopters were more efficient than typical cranes for securely installing the HVAC units.

Anticipated Results

The facility is one of the largest publicly announced food plant construction projects in the U.S. By using energy-efficient technology, state-of-the-art equipment, creative problem-solving and a design-build approach that incorporates an owner viewpoint in every recommendation made, we have kept this large-scale project on schedule and within budget.