Steel mega construction for refrigerated warehouse

'Steel is in our blood'

SSI SCHAEFER manufactured, supplied and erected the steel structure for Agristo's new refrigerated warehouse in Tilburg: A spectacular mega-structure that cannot be overlooked. The manufacturer of frozen potato products has previously built warehouses with SSI SCHAEFER.

SSI SCHAEFER specialises in complete intralogistics solutions, including high bay warehouses. The construction of these poses specific challenges, explains Henk van Mullem, Manager Auslandsgesellschaft at SSI-SCHÄFER. "At great heights, the effects of weather conditions increase. Traditional construction then requires large columns which then get in the way when arranging the intralogistics set-ups. With the clad-rack method, the building load is incorporated into the steel structure and you can maximize the capacity of the building. So no square meters are lost. To such a self-supporting warehouse, the facade finish and roof construction can be directly attached."  

More than three thousand tons of steel

Agristo's warehouse was equipped with fully automated pallet storage. It has 42,420 pallet spaces and is 122 meters long, 55 meters wide and 46 meters high. More than 3,000 tons of steel were used for it. Van Mullem: "A customer can make their own design, but they can also come to us for a logistics solution. In both cases, this allows our internal experts to make a proposal for the customer. Everything, of course, at a high level. After the order follows the detailed engineering, all done by SSI's experts. This expertise is located in Neunkirchen, the heart of SSI SCHAEFER with its proverbial men of steel. This is where a parts list of all the parts that make up the structure is produced. This parts list is really worked out down to the nuts and bolts." 

In addition to the steel structure, SSI SCHAEFER also supplied the mezzanines that house the conveyor belts. In addition, a 43 metre high stairwell was constructed for servicing the refrigeration systems. Van Mullem: "A project like this has to be stable from the very first screw. That is why we build the derricks first and only then the attachments. During construction, the structure must already be solid enough to withstand weather conditions. This is because the exterior panels that make the warehouse air and watertight are installed last."

World Player

Over more than 80 years, SSI SCHAEFER has grown to become a leading provider of intralogistics solutions worldwide. For warehouse equipment, the company has a broad and modularly expandable product range. This includes shelving systems, (mobile) pallet racks, bins and mezzanines as well as complete AGV or LogiMat systems. SSI SCHAEFER also offers the unique combination of mobile racking operated by laser-guided AGVs. There are also options for manual or automated order picking. The WAMAS® software controls and manages the internal logistics processes in warehouses for optimised goods movements. 

Collaboration

All SSI SCHAEFER products can withstand extreme requirements, such as deep-freeze temperatures. Because the company takes on the complex project management, from the idea to the delivery of the finished steel structure, good cooperation with the customer is required. Van Mullem says, "We had challenges with material availability during the construction of Agristo's warehouse in Tilburg. By working well together and with help from the customer, we were able to solve this. This customer is a good relation of ours and really thought along with us. This is how we eventually managed to hand over this project." On-site coordination is important to make it a success for all parties involved. The project managers at SSI SCHAEFER are all IPMA-certified in order to provide the best for the customer from a project management perspective as well.