resources , and we look to Ayres as an extension of those resources . It was nice to feel secure that Ayres had all the site work and warehouse done , which allowed our team to focus on production and other issues .”
Bush Brothers wasn ’ t planning just for immediate needs , though ; it was planning for a facility that can be used for 30 years or more .
“ We don ’ t want to do this twice ,” Tolan said . “ We had to take our best estimates and all these ‘ what if ’ scenarios . We wanted to put this infrastructure in for the warehouse and then extend it for the rest . That was a really big challenge .
“ We realize that we ’ re not sure what the future looks like . There is constantly evolving technology in the food industry that affects production , which affects the layout and size of the facility .”
Greg Adams , Ayres Associates ’ lead site engineer for the project , said the warehouse was designed for an additional 200-foot expansion without requiring any additional site grading , stormwater design , utility relocation , or rail reconstruction .
The new warehouse is 237,000 square feet and 41 feet tall , making it one of the biggest buildings in terms of volume that Ayres Associates has designed , said Mike Berg , who led the architectural / structural design for the warehouse . The project included about 1,900 square feet of shipping and distribution office space and connections to an existing warehouse and rail dock .
The new warehouse replaced several off-site storage facilities , which will save on freight costs , streamline inventory management , improve scheduling , and increase product security , said Todd Peterson , environmental facility manager for Bush Brothers . “ And every time you have freight , you have damage ,” he said .
The warehouse was designed with an eye to the future . Products are stacked four pallets high now , but the building was designed extra tall with a flat floor and upgraded fire protection system to accommodate technology changes , such as storing products on racks .
The design also considered operator comfort and energy savings , with 40- to 50-foot-diameter fans pushing hot air back to the floor and a heat recovery system installed that will use hot water from the hydrostatic cookers to heat the warehouse .
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