Another Construction Project in the Books by Jeff Meiners Six months seems like a very long time…that is unless one is attempting to build 30,000 square feet of state-of-the- art production space including three production lines, a wash room, a maintenance area and a mechanical room. To complicate matters, let’s consider that the construction is being done in the middle of a very full and operating warehouse for food products – each room will be constructed so they are completely isolated from the others including their mechanical systems – one room will require ultra-low humidity levels (below 20%) – 1500 yards of cement and a half million feet of wire will be needed to complete the project – and just for kicks and grins, it will be done in the middle of a pandemic that brings with it a whole new set of restrictions and uncertainty. Then, my friends, six months becomes an incredibly short period of time to pull off the miracle that the Crest Building Main- tenance staff and our dedicated group of suppliers just accomplished. Crest seems to have a history of accepting challenges that call for ultimate creativity in shortening the normal timeline for accomplishing a project and this one was no exception. Steve Zera, our Engineering Manager and project leader, probably sighed a little when he got the news on the scope of the project and the timeline that was expected, but he never missed a beat from that time until completion. He and his staff of Brian Schafer, Peyton Brown, Dusty Koch and Jason Drew rolled up their sleeves and were intimately involved with all stages of the project. Our contractors were every bit as much dedicated to this project as we were and it simply would not have happened without the level of care and effort they brought to the job every day. Many thanks go out to Bennett Construction, Quality Electric, Mechanical Inc., Beesing Welding and Tom White Painting. Equally important to this process was the staff of the warehouse that was totally accommodating to this huge intrusion in their building. Just imagine the reaction of Jerry Lawrence when we broke the news to him that we would be stealing a big portion of space from his already full warehouse – we’re not sure how he did it, but they managed to make it work. Normal construction sites offer plenty of room to allow big equipment to make the construction project easier. Since this job was being done in the middle of our warehouse, the construction project became quite unique. Big footings needed to be dug and then poured in tight quarters resulting in dirt being hauled out one small cart at a time and cement delivered to the footings in a similar fashion. Normally, pre-stressed concrete slabs are set with a big crane from the back of the truck that delivered them, but in this case each slab had to be brought into the build- ing on a cart and then set with a much smaller lift in very tight spaces. These types of accommodations were made in all phases of the project. While the construction process was somewhat unique, the results are nothing short of fantastic. Our new production rooms are the best we know how to build and they will serve Crest, our employees and our customers very well for years to come. Since we didn’t build this area to stand empty and look pretty – the hand-off has been made to the Engineering and Maintenance group to fill the rooms with production lines that will offer sophistication to match the rooms they are being placed in. The plans look great…we can’t wait to see them in action. From Karen Yardley: After many years of making the long trek from the West Production area down to the Mix Fa- cility, Sanitation is very excited to have their very own washbay! How many of you remember using Mix or Sweco Room 8 as a washbay when we first moved into the Mix Facility back in 2003? When the need arose, sometime around 2011, the Battery Charging Area was moved from its original location, walls went up and we now had a washbay at the Mix Facility! With the addition of more production lines out west as Crest continues to grow and prosper, the proximity of a washbay became an even bigger issue. As plans were made for renovations at the east end of the Warehouse, a washbay was made the first phase of the project. The Sanitarians are very grateful to have this area as it makes our job much easier and saves a lot of time!
4 Crest Ink April, May, June, July, August & September 2020
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