Creating an Efficient Dock Operation
Project Overview
Headquartered in York, ME, Stonewall Kitchen is known nationally as a producer of high-quality, specialty food products. Their product line ranges from jams and jellies to grill sauces and mustards, sold in thousands of stores across the US.
With ever-increasing demand for its line of specialty food products in the region, Stonewall Kitchen needed to increase the size of the warehouse and distribution facility. Stonewall Kitchen contracted Sullivan Construction of Bedford, NH, to oversee the construction of a new, nearly 2 acre warehouse and distribution center. In turn, Sullivan subcontracted the installation of dock levelers and seals to Bode Equipment.
The Full Story
Stonewall Kitchen is known nationally as a producer of high-quality, specialty food products. Their product line ranges from jams and jellies to grill sauces and mustards, sold in thousands of stores across the US.
With ever-increasing demand for its line of specialty food products in the region, Stonewall Kitchen needed to increase the size of the warehouse and distribution facility. The current warehouse located in Rochester, NH, was quickly becoming too small to handle the volume the growing business demanded. Upon locating a plot of land in Dover, NH, Stonewall Kitchen contracted Sullivan Construction of Bedford, NH, to oversee the construction of a new, nearly 2 acre warehouse and distribution center.
To accommodate the high volume of goods that would be traveling in and out of the new facility, site plans called for nine, separate loading bays, complete with dock levelers and seals. As general contractor, Sullivan put this portion of the project out to bid and was immediately impressed with Bode’s response.
“Bode presented a professional bid that encompassed everything we needed to complete the loading docks for the new facility,” comments Sullivan Construction Superintendent, Paul Kelley. “Their ability to provide a total solution, combined with their extensive experience and reasonable prices, made them the obvious choice for the job.”
“From the very beginning of the project, I was impressed by the Bode team,” Kelley continues. “The president of the company himself came out to the project site to assess what was needed and put together an installation plan that fit seamlessly within the overall scope of construction.”
The Bode team worked closely with the steel and concrete subcontractors as the loading area was constructed. Timing and delivery of the dock leveler pans was crucial as a concrete base was poured along the entire length of the facility. Bode set, secured and anchored the leveler pans, Sullivan poured the rest of the concrete and Bode then came in to complete the installation of the levelers, doors and seals.
“Sometimes it can be difficult to coordinate with subcontractors to work with your schedule,” adds Kelley. “Bode was very easy to worth with, consistently on time, doing what was needed when it was needed and keeping us constantly up to date on their progress and providing proactive solutions to stay ahead of potential problems.”
One such issue was the height of the overhead doors that was needed. With a 42-foot high space, Bode was immediately concerned about what tracks and fastenings would be able to withstand the stress of operating such large doors. Rather than take a ‘wait and see’ approach, Bode brought the issue to Kelley’s attention at the very start of the project and immediately proposed solutions that would avoid future problems with the doors’ functionality.
Upon completion, the new, 2+ acre warehouse had the nine, extra-high loading bays necessary to accommodate the increased flow of goods moving in and out of the warehouse of this rapidly growing company.
“I really enjoyed working with Bode. They were proactive, professional and very easy to work with,” concludes Kelley. “Their attention to detail along with the care and forethought put into the installation process really made this project a success. Honestly, it couldn’t have gone any better.”
