Belz Provides Total Package of Location, Design, and Construction for Smith & Nephew's Largest Distribution Center Worldwide
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
When medical device manufacturer Smith & Nephew decided to build a new distribution facility, the company was not only looking for land conveniently located near air, ground, and rail shipping routes, but also for a company that had the design and construction capabilities to build the new facility.
The search led the company to Belz. It was the total package offered by Belz that influenced Smith & Nephew's decision to build their new distribution center at the Memphis Logistics and Technology Center (MELTECH). Belz offered a strategic position in MELTECH, conveniently located in America's Distribution Center, which, combined with the company's design and construction capabilities, made the partnership a perfect match.
Belz sold 37 acres of land to Smith & Nephew for the construction of the 210,000-square-foot, Class A warehouse/distribution facility, which is expandable to almost 350,000 square feet. Construction on the facility has already begun and is scheduled to be completed in the summer of 2008.
"MELTECH is a prime warehouse distribution park, strategically positioned close to the Memphis International Airport and FedEx hub. It also provides easy access to the interstate systems for trucking routes," says Andrew J. Groveman, Senior Vice President, Belz. "MELTECH's location combined with our vertical capabilities to design and build is what sold this deal to Smith & Nephew.
Belz Architecture and Construction is designing and constructing the state-of-the-art distribution center. The new distribution center will be the largest Smith & Nephew distribution facility in the world. Belz Architecture and Construction will provide turn-key design-build services, providing one single source of contact and responsibility for the state-of-the-art facility. The new center will be taller and more modern than the existing Smith & Nephew facility, and it will be climate controlled for the surgical orthopedic products. The facility will also have a 1,200-square-foot "clean room" designed to eliminate dust particles in order to avoid contamination of the surgical products. Backup generators will also be installed in case of power outage.
"The turn-key service we will be providing on the design and construction of this facility will ultimately reduce the cost of these services for Smith & Nephew and will increase efficiency in the design-build process," says Jack Bearden, Managing Director, Belz Architecture and Construction.
The new facility will be built to the 2006 International Building Code (IBC) seismic code. This will be the first facility of its kind in Memphis built to these new, more restrictive seismic codes.
"This is going to be our largest distribution facility in the world, and we are very pleased to partner with Belz on this project," says Bill Griffin, Senior Vice President of Global Operations, Smith & Nephew. "This is going to be the world's premier distribution facility of its kind with a fully automated inventory system and other state-of-the-art amenities."
MELTECH is a 233-acre development, characterized by attractive building facades and landscaped grounds. The Park includes occupants such as UPS, Vital Records Control, PODS Modular Systems, Fairmont Industries, and the local hub for Xtra Lease Intermodal.