Blue Rock Construction was proud to deliver a new 200,640-square-foot cold storage/freezer facility for owner Dermody Properties and tenant J&J Snack Foods at LogistiCenter at Woolwich (N.J.).
Based in Pennsauken, N.J., J&J Snack Foods is the nation’s leading provider of nutritious and affordable niche snack foods to food service and retail supermarket outlets across the country.
J&J Snack Foods produces such snack icons as SUPERPRETZEL, ICEE, Luigi’s Italian Ice, and Dippin’ Dots beaded ice cream, along with other baked goods and frozen beverages.
The new building features:
- 150,000 SF Freezer (-10°)
- 40,000 SF Dock Area (35°-40°)
- 8,500 SF Office
- 6,400 sf freezer (-45°) for Dippin’ Dots
- 22 dock doors to keep a temperature of 36°F for optimal shipping
Midway through the project, J&J Snack Foods purchased Dippin’ Dots, a producer of flash-frozen beaded ice cream treats, which added a late change of plans for the new facility.
Dippin’ Dots required an extremely cold environment (-45°) that Blue Rock had to construct within the -10° freezer.
“Before the purchase of Dippin’ Dots, we were preparing to pour slabs and complete the underground glycol floor warming system throughout the entire -10 freezer,” said Blue Rock Senior Vice President Kevin Kelly.
“With the help of the engineers and architect, we were able to quickly come up with a design for the new -45 freezer area.”
The -45° freezer area includes 8 inches of under-slab insulation, 8 inches of IMP wall and ceiling panels, specialized refrigeration/fire protection systems, and the installation of an HCR Door at the freezer’s entrance.
A specialized HCR door was installed to act as an air curtain while blowing hot air between the different temperature spaces to combat freezing/condensation issues.
All aspects of the -45° freezer design were strategically engineered to withstand the harsh temperatures and conditions of the storage space. The construction was completed without delaying any other activities and the overall schedule of the job.
The new building is J&J Snack Foods’ largest stand-alone facility in the country and is expected to create 90 new jobs in Southern New Jersey.
