Maintaining Food Safety and Quality Assurance During a Renovation

Whether you are just building, or simply renovating your food production facility, as a business owner, you probably know the strict laws and regulations that are enforced regarding food production and their storage facilities.

This is something that needs to be taken into consideration before your construction project even begins.

It is important to take into account how your construction project will impact your food production and storage.

Will you continue to produce during this time, and how will you ensure the food in storage and the food being produced stays clean of debris, dust, and dirt?

Some companies decide it is in their best interest to stop production during a renovation or remodel, but some figure out a safe and sanitary way to continue business as usual.

We also know that renovations can be time-consuming, so we understand that many business owners cannot afford to shut down operations for the entirety of their remodeling construction project.

Therefore, it is essential to take precautionary measures to protect the quality of your food from the dirt, dust, and debris that is constantly in the air of active construction sites.

This may seem like an impossible task, but if your food production facility is made of metal, this might be an easier job than you think.

With the implementation of ventilation systems and easy cleaning and power washing of the metal walls, this should keep your facility up to code while your remodel is underway.

Whatever you decide is best for your business will need to be approved and monitored by the USDA.

It is also a good idea to establish a team dedicated to tracking the food’s safety and standards. This can be beneficial to ensuring food safety compliance with the USDA.

To learn more about the laws and regulations surrounding food production and additional concerns you should take into consideration during a building remodel, visit the USDA’s website, here, and keep reading below!

What Construction Materials to Use?

If you are remodeling or adding an addition to your current food production facility, you may want to use the same material as the original structure to maintain consistency and a uniform look for the exterior of your facility.

However, if you are looking for the most sustainable, cost-effective, and reliable material for your expansion project, you should consider using metal.

Metal buildings are typically built from steel which has many benefits.

They are especially great for food production facilities that require refrigeration. This is because HVAC systems can run less and reduce energy use based on the insulation provided by a metal structure.

Metal buildings are also more impervious to the elements, so storms, strong wind, heavy rain, and even minor flooding will not affect food production or damage the manufacturing or storage equipment, which is necessary to keep your business up and running through the toughest times.

Lastly, metal building kits are easy to expand. Business owners can seamlessly add additions on to their metal building kits as their food production business grows, which reduces the need to halt production and move the entire operation to a building with more space.

Food Production Facility Standards

If you are remodeling your food production facility, there must be a reason.

Our guess is that it is out of date and needs a bit of a facelift.

However, renovating old buildings can come with challenges of their own.

Depending on the age of your food production facility, new codes may be in place that you will now have to meet.

Typically with older buildings, whatever utilities and structures are in place are grandfathered in, but when you get permits and dive into a full on restoration project, you will be required to bring everything up to code.

This means electrical, plumbing, and structural issues.

Whatever problems that went noticed before will now be prone to inspection and required to be fixed before business is approved to be resumed.

Find a Qualified and Project Management Team

Whether you are ready to remodel a food manufacturing facility or simply want to add an addition to your pre-existing food production facility it is essential to find your business an engineering firm that is going to handle every stage of your renovation.

This means, in addition to the engineering of the building and renovation, they also handle the material manufacturing and construction in-house.

CDMG, a quality and professional engineering firm, is a subsidiary of STEVENS construction, which happens to be the largest independently owned construction firm in the US.

Partnering with these two companies will ensure you get the final building you need and want, while ensuring the best quality you can get.

If you are ready to expand or renovate your food production facility, click on the button below today and one of our experienced design engineers can help you take the first steps.

Original blog post published here.