Bidfood Wellington

We built a new chilled and frozen food distribution facility at Bidfood NZ’s Grenada North site, including a cold store, chilled food facility, meat chiller, dry store, drive-through and ELA loading dock, forklift charging room, plant rooms and cooling pods, plus office spaces.

This was a fast-paced project requiring detailed planning and logistics to ensure we could work on multiple areas at the same time. We coordinated a complex multi-crane lift to place the structural steel for the roof structure, assembling the massive steel frames in sections on the ground then lifting them into place using four mobile cranes operating in tandem, working from MEWPs to secure the final bolts. This innovative methodology meant that additional temporary propping wasn’t required and allowed us to do the majority of construction at ground level, minimising work at height.

A 1,560 square metre structural slab pour was a highlight for the team. It took three months of advance planning, two concrete pumps, 180 cubic metres of concrete and a midnight start. Following the lead of a similar build for Bidfood in Taupō, we used Denka expansive concrete additive for the slab. Denka reduces cracking and eliminates the need for control joints but is more complex to place and finish. All the planning and excellent quality control meant the pour was executed successfully.

The build involved complex cooling and fire suppression systems. We partnered with the client on design changes that allowed them to incorporate the latest cooling plant technology, with our Digital team coordinating the various models and shop drawings and using the Cupix reality capture platform to keep our out-of-town based client up to date.

Photos by Jason Mann Photography