Strategic planning and 'thinking outside the box' might best describe the business ethos of our client, Service Foods Ltd, headquartered in Auckland. The food service provider has made its mark in New Zealand, catering primarily to the hospitality industry by bringing premium, quality foods directly to restaurants, airlines and other specialty food outlets. 

Our role with Service Foods was to update their core business model, with an in-house distribution arm operating throughout the country. We were commissioned with the erection of a new food processing and distribution centre for their largest building to date, which would also serve as their new main office. 

The new 10,300m² facility took nearly two years of preplanning, with the initial plan drawn up by another contractor. We provided input along the way and forwarded design iterations to their management team, which helped cement the project's final scope. The draft terms themselves needed to meet several requirements, the first of which required aligning the design with a predetermined budget. Secondly, preferred subcontractors that Service Foods Ltd had previously worked with (particularly in the refrigeration industry) needed to be involved in the build. Lastly, contractual terms for meeting the target deadlines, to which all parties could agree, had to be put in place. 

Across all three points, our team met Service Foods Ltd's expectations. A partnership with Engenium, an engineering firm with which we've long had a relationship, was pivotal to designing and implementing the final solution. Our pricing and contract teams worked closely with Engenium to arrive at a workable solution that Service Foods Ltd accepted. Calder Stewart's own Adrian Mathieson was instrumental in bringing everything together as project sponsor. 

The facility itself is large by any standard, with the main building measuring 172m long by 60m wide. The layout includes 16 truck docks and a 3,520m², two-level food processing area. Complete with a mezzanine floor, the space can process a full spectrum of food types, from fish, beef, pork, poultry and lamb to a range of vegetables, fruit and other produce. Our team worked closely with the equipment vendors for this section during their installation, providing a suitable load-bearing solution in advance. 

The separate refrigeration area includes two massive chillers, measuring over 800m² each and a 14m tall, 1,784m² freezer with full height racking. At the other end of the complex, there's a 3,600m² dry store capable of storing a wide range of specialty food types. An environmental load-out area was included in the build to ensure food safety and all hygiene requirements were met. At the front of the facility stands a three-story, 1,500m² office, designed to a high architectural style and specification.

Auckland-based development company Windermere Holdings spearheaded the much-anticipated opening of the Kmart complex in Invercargill. From the onset, Windermere sought a suitable site near Invercargill's CBD on which to build. After negotiations with the city council, a tract of land bordering Forth, Liddel and Wood Streets was purchased for the project. 

Due to its relatively small size (5,300m²), the complex was initially planned as a two-storey build. Car parks were situated on the ground floor, while Kmart, along with other tenants of the complex, occupied the first level. 

Windermere approached us as their preferred Design Build partner and contractor for the project, handing over a rough hand-drawn sketch to our design team. They were also the ones to turn what Windermere envisioned into a final structure. The design itself needed to accommodate the lay of the land and, more particularly, a waterway, which would abut the site. In conjunction with an outside engineering consultancy, our design team came up with the idea of using a precast concrete seawall solution. The design solution would be used on a retaining wall, which figured prominently into the structure's final design. Since Kmart was the key tenant, we were careful to take elements of their brand and incorporate them into the final look. This look included using painted, precast concrete and coloured PIR insulated panels to match Kmart's colour scheme. 

The complex includes Kmart and eight other tenants, making for a unique indoor mall experience. Once the design was finalised, it was determined that three of the satellite tenants would be located on the first level. The remaining five were situated on the ground level, adjacent to an undercover car park capable of holding 147 vehicles. 

The look and feel of the completed project are bold and striking, with a 9m tall glazed section, sat at one of the complex's corners, making for a spacious and well-lit atrium-style entrance. On the first level, where Kmart is situated, the decision was made to defer having a dropped ceiling instead of leaving it open to a vaulted roof showing. Overall, the complex has an impressive presence — as a local retail manager for Kmart remarked, "it's our best looking store in NZ".

We have a history of developing smarter property outcomes for our clients, and these purpose-built premises for Glassons were no exception. The popular clothing brand has been around for a century, and to stay in both business and fashion, they’ve continued to reinvent themselves to reflect changes in the industry. Today, Glassons is progressively moving online, yet they still retain their strong brick and mortar presence nationally across 36 outlets. 

To better cater to their online clientele, owner Hallenstein Glasson Holdings determined it was time for Glassons to expand their distribution centre, which is where we came in. The Glasson’s team turned to us for the perfect location and Design Build solution. Our booming Hornby Quadrant section in Christchurch was selected as the locale, providing ample space for a new warehouse and dispatching centre. 

The project included all our classic package options — structural steel, precast concrete and reinforced building supplies, all sourced from within our own companies. Without a hitch, the ground crew completed the build weeks ahead of schedule. The build came right in time for the client’s online launch, which greatly increased their satisfaction with our overall service.