Tampa, Florida – The move to green development and LEED certification is the hottest topic in design, construction, and real estate today. LEED certification by the United States Green Building Council is the “badge of honor” in today’s market. The finest projects in the country spend countless hours and dollars pursuing this accolade, but receiving this desirable recognition is rare. It is an even rarer event when this certification is bestowed upon an industrial facility as it was with the recent award of the LEED Silver certification for the new state-of-the- art Premier Beverage Distribution Center in Tampa, Florida.
Most LEED projects resort to exotic and costly building elements to achieve their LEED designation, but not this one. Through clever use of conventional building materials and the excellent vision of the ownership team, Sunbelt – Charmer Inc., this 570,000 square foot distribution center achieved this highly-coveted recognition without having to use much more than good common sense and a willingness to pursue the goal.
The Design/Build firm of R.R. Simmons Design and Construction, LLC, of Tampa, Florida, worked closely with The Charmer Sunbelt Group team from the very beginning to deliver a superior facility. First and foremost, the goal was to create an operationally excellent distribution center for Premier to provide a high level of service their customers have come to expect of them. With a shared vision of environmental responsibility, the team also sought to build a project that would be sustainable and sensitive to the natural environment.
At the project’s concept stage, the goal was to achieve the first level of certification. However, during the course of the project, smart design decisions and good construction practices firmly secured the project’s Silver Class certification with thirty-five points out of a possible thirty-nine. This accomplishment is particularly noteworthy given the site’s unique challenges, including the need to materially improve the watershed and existing habitats. As home for a nesting pair of bald eagles, the site required careful planning, and the team took great care to minimize the site disturbance yet still accomplish the needs of the new distribution center.
Harnessing the simplicity of concrete tilt-up, this center made great use of the inherent sustainable benefits of locally-produced building materials. The use of concrete tilt-up wall panels that were cast on site, limited the transportation cost of one of the major building components, and all excess concrete was collected, crushed, and recycled for other uses. Many of the building materials were chosen for their high recycled content or their ability to be recycled at some future point. A brilliant, white single-ply roof was added to the massive, twelve-acre structure. This highly reflective roof will substantially lower the building’s energy consumption. By scientifically modeling all of the electrical, lighting, and climate control systems, the team was able to eliminate energy waste and improve the working environment for the facility. In addition, these efforts will provide a 21% improvement in operational cost when compared to the baseline design criteria.
Premier Beverage is the largest user-based industrial LEED Silver facility in the Florida. It also has the unique distinction of being the only industrial project featured in the American Concrete Institute’s recent sustainable concrete publication, an important new industry reference. Premier Beverage was also honored by Beverage World who selected this distribution center as Facility of the Year.
With R.R. Simmons’ fast-track program, this entire 570,000 square foot facility was delivered start to finish in only 10 months to accommodate the owner’s early occupancy needs and Premier’s impressive growth. Finally, this project provided substantial economic development value to the community. Not only did it improve the existing site conditions and watershed, but it also created numerous construction jobs and improved the traffic infrastructure for the surrounding neighborhood.
About R.R. Simmons
As the Design/Builder, R.R. Simmons is pleased to have worked in concert with the Premier Beverage Project Team on this significant community asset and environmentally-sensitive commercial project. For further information on this specific project, the use of LEED criteria in commercial projects, or the merits of the Design/Build delivery system, contact Randy Simmons of R.R. Simmons at 813-632-5551 or randysimmons@rrimmons.com
About Charmer Sunbelt
The Charmer Sunbelt Group (CSG) is one of the nation’s leading distributors of fine wines and spirits. A group of privately-held companies, CSG operates local distributor and/or brokerage houses in 15 markets – Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Maryland, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York (Metro and Upstate), Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Virginia, and The District of Columbia. Together, these companies employ more than 7,000 associates who bring to market some of the most valuable and well-known consumer brands in the world. CSG is a family-owned business that proudly serves as the critical link between wine and spirit suppliers, and the retail outlets where alcoholic beverage brands are legally and responsibly sold and enjoyed. For more information about CSG, please visit www.charmer-sunbelt.com
If you would like to know how the Design/Build Team at R.R. Simmons can make your next project a LEED success go to www.rrsimmons.com .
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