Gehl Food & Beverage Southeast
Walterboro, SC
The Challenge
As Gehl Food & Beverage Southeast expanded its manufacturing operations in Walterboro, South Carolina, the facility required a robust mechanical infrastructure capable of supporting both immediate production demands and future growth. The expansion consisted of two major phases: the mechanical upfit of an existing warehouse to temporarily house manufactured goods and production assets, followed by the renovation and expansion of the primary manufacturing facility. To meet Gehl’s aggressive production schedule, the mechanical systems needed to be installed quickly while providing the low-temperature process cooling capacity required for food manufacturing, all without limiting the facility’s ability to expand in the years ahead.
The Solution
Working alongside McCrory Construction, the project began with the mechanical upfit of Gehl’s nearby warehouse, allowing the company to relocate production assets and manufactured goods while construction commenced on the primary manufacturing facility. Partnering with GMK Associates on the engineered design, WBG’s Design/Build Team delivered the complete mechanical installation, including a new chiller plant and closed circuit cooling tower system designed to provide the low-temperature process cooling required for production. The system included (2) 400 ton Trane water cooled chillers for redundant cooling capacity, supported by (2) BAC closed circuit cooling towers capable of delivering 1,428 GPM. To accelerate installation and reduce field labor, WBG utilized Victaulic’s prefabricated piping system, significantly reducing welding requirements and helping keep the project on schedule. Looking beyond the immediate expansion, the entire chiller plant was engineered with future growth in mind, providing space, infrastructure, and piping capacity for two additional chillers and three additional cooling towers as production demands continue to increase.
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Joel Drewry
WBG Safety Coordinator