HPM Selected as Program Manager for Buffalo Rock Distribution Hub Expansion
HPM will serve as the program manager for Buffalo Rock’s 1 million-square-foot expansion in Birmingham, Alabama. It is the soft drink distributor’s largest infrastructure investment to date. This includes the renovation of an 895,000-square-foot warehouse and an approximately 120,000-square-foot office building, which will serve as the central distribution hub for the premier provider of food and beverage products. HPM’s Senior Program Development Manager Bruce Quisno and Project Manager Jeremiah Owen will oversee the project.
Buffalo Rock acquired the properties located at 400 Industrial Drive and 800 Lakeshore Drive earlier this year and recently announced plans for the massive expansion, which includes a $75 million investment in new technologies, infrastructure improvements and property renovations, leading to the creation of up to 50 new jobs in the initial phase of the project. As part of a strategic growth initiative to expand over the next decade, these state-of-the-art upgrades will double Buffalo Rock’s output, provide 90 loading docks, reduce the number of touches and improve efficiencies.
This office acquisition will significantly improve employee experience, increase productivity and allow for future growth. The renovated facilities are expected to be operational by the fall of 2021. Hoar Construction and GMC have partnered to be the lead Design-Build team for the project.
“Our team selected HPM for many reasons, but most notably because they demonstrated the ability to offer a full suite of planning solutions that carried us from acquisition to operation, and we couldn’t be happier with their performance at this stage of the journey,” said Matthew Dent, Buffalo Rock President and Chief Operating Officer. “We are not only moving with speed, but we are considering all options and addressing budget questions in real time as we bring this campus restoration to life. I am confident our employee-partners will love the experience this investment creates, and I am certain our customers will see the benefits this investment brings them in terms of service and quality.”
Buffalo Rock first tapped HPM to oversee programming and planning for the initial stages of the project. HPM led site analysis efforts, including a site assessment involving environmental studies and the hiring of consultants to perform upfront due diligence, which ultimately enabled Buffalo Rock to purchase the property. By performing a cost analysis and identifying which areas of the project to prioritize, HPM helped Buffalo Rock and its partners identify and control costs in planning, condensing the overall project timeline.
“I’m pleased with the strategic planning services we were able to provide Buffalo Rock as the company scouted various sites for its expansion, which led them to finding the ideal location off of Lakeshore Drive in Birmingham,” said HPM’s Quisno. “HPM’s expertise in preconstruction planning and site analysis positioned us as the perfect partner to ensure that every detail of the new site was carefully scrutinized and accounted for before any decisions were made, and now we’re ready to oversee the execution of Buffalo Rock’s expansion plans. I know our team is excited to see Buffalo Rock’s growth goals realized, and we’re honored to serve as a strategic partner for a company that continues to invest in Birmingham by expanding its operations here, creating jobs and partnering with the City to develop our community’s workforce.”
This assignment adds to our growing portfolio of clients and projects within the food and beverage industry, including the recent expansion and improvement of Royal Cup Coffee’s manufacturing facilities in Birmingham. The project received a Manufacturing Innovation Award from ProFood World in 2019.
