Constructing a facility on a greenfield site is challenging enough to require construction firms skilled in the type of facility being built. You would not call a furniture manufacturer to order a new car, nor a car manufacturer to have a tailored suit made. The same is true of the special skills and experience required for different types of construction.
Constructing an industrial plant expansion is challenging, and keeping your operations maintained and minimally impacted during construction is difficult. High levels of communication and coordination are required between many different parties to deliver a plant expansion during the plant’s ongoing production.
The process of achieving a low-impact expansion begins in the planning stages, long before any design work is done. An understanding of the project’s objectives, the project site’s constraints and the needs of the ongoing production and operations must be fully defined. These range from contractor access points; the security of the contractor’s employees and material deliveries; the avoidance of employee, truck and rail traffic; the review and expansion of permits; tie-ins to the existing utilities; having contractors work in zones requiring higher levels of security and safety precautions; where and how material removed will be stored and disposed; environmental issues … the list goes on and on.
Hanson has helped many of our clients successfully expand their plants. Having an experienced team to guide you through this process will save money and aggravation for your employees. It is critical to develop a construction phasing plan, reviewed and modified based on the input from the designers, contractors, plant safety and plant operations, from the project’s initial planning its substantial completion. These plans require constant review and revision as more details are known. A smooth turnover of these plans from the designer and plant personnel to a contractor is required, and including them in the contractor bid package can lead to better bids as unknowns are removed from the project.
Contact Dave Thomson at dthomson@hanson-inc.com for help with your plant expansion.
