Design and Installation of New Office Workspace, Food-Grade Production Facilities and Additional Storage Capacity
Design and installation of new offices, laboratory areas, food-grade standard production facilities and warehouse storage to provide an enhanced environment and workflow for staff, ensuring the new production facilities met the industry requirements for business diversification into the food and beauty products sectors as well as improving raw material storage capacity and finished goods distribution.
Client Background
Established almost 50 years ago JC Buck Ltd is a leading supplier of essential oils, absolutes, resinoids and balsams to flavour and fragrance manufacturers globally, from multi-national corporations to fresh start-ups, using a select supplier network of trusted growers and producers to ensure the consistency of high quality raw materials.
Location: Brentwood, Essex
Overview
The business profile had been changing for some time with diversification into the food sector as well as beauty products which meant a move towards attaining a specific level of accreditation in the industry. The existing site could not accommodate this required growth in its current form where a new focus on meeting food-grade production standards and improved, more efficient laboratory spaces would be needed.
JC Buck was keen to understand how all aspects of their operation could be better space planned and set out for improved efficiency and approached SEC Interiors following recommendation from a Commercial Property Agent. Following the running of non-property specific initial budget costing exercise, the customer sought out and committed to a property consulting with SEC Interiors then went through a more rigorous scrutineering process which gave them the comfort to commit to SEC Interiors and work collaboratively with them on developing the project towards a final design.
Solution
For SEC, there were a number of challenges in the design flow, workflow, and allowing the staff to work dynamically, as well as changes to their product range to meet the new industry accreditation levels.
The site had an existing office element on the ground and 1st floor with a really quite un-user friendly circulation flow leading from the proposed ground offices to lab, then from the production area to the warehouse. SEC designed a loop that significantly improved circulation, was cost effective, Building Regulations compliant and with minimal disruption to the structure of the building thus mitigating dilapidation issues upon lease expiry. SEC spent a considerable amount of time analysing the potential flow routes to create a design that would allow the loop to connect the office to warehouse avoiding passing through the production or laboratory and food-grade areas.
In order to support the activities required of the new facilities the building required a power upgrade by the landlord’s service providers which SEC supported as part of the License to Alter. SEC also brought into play a phased License to Alter process acceptable to the Landlords Surveyors assisting the client to liaise with the landlord in order to meet the tight deadline for granting of the license and therefore commencement and completion of the works ahead of the clients exit date from their existing property.
To make best use of the height of the building in the production area a mezzanine floor was introduced for multiple purposes. In the first instance it provided a support structure for the production area ceiling as well as overflow storage capacity for the warehouse. Looking to the future it also provided expansion space for the offices as the business continued to grow whereas looking to install it at a later date to this purpose would have meant total shutdown of the production facility whilst it was constructed.
When Industry Knowledge Really Counts
Facilitating a lease signing for a customer usually takes place when there is a full design layout which in principle, confirms the proposed design before agreement to build. A phased design and build approach facilitated by SEC Interiors allowed the customer to gain the License to Alter whilst still in the Detailed Design & Build phase.
SEC also pre-consulted with its strategic partner and Building Regulations Consultant to ensure that, amongst many other elements, part of the circulation loop which only had a width of 650mm and was only required for access to the changing area and production facility met the requirement of the whole site, site specific strategy to meet Part B of the Building Regulations.
To support the customer’s own compliance officer, SEC assisted in the research of the industry standards they had to meet for the planned food-grade area to ensure the proposed design would be fully compliant.
Additionally SEC worked closely with the customer’s appointed specialist contractor for tank fabrication, providing a flexible approach to adjust the fit out design to be in line with the required tank installation proposal as it developed.
The installation of the approved design was further challenged with COVID-19 restrictions coming into play mid-program. However, SEC Interiors, after working closely with the national agency CLC and industry body FIS in establishing working processes for keeping construction working across the board, implemented these procedures and protocols and reduced site downtime to retrievable levels and without extending the program.
Are you seeking new lab fit-outs or cleanroom areas within your business? Get in touch with our team who specialise in these style of fit-outs
