Story

Kentwood, MI – (January 8, 2006) Wolverine Building, Inc. and Robert Grooters Development Company complete a state-of-the-art facility for Advance Packaging, a local manufacturer of corrugated containers.

The new 400,000 square foot building is located north of 40th Street and west of Patterson Avenue in Kentwood, Michigan. Advance Packaging was operating out of three different buildings throughout the Grand Rapids area. Construction of the new facility was a decision to trim costs by consolidating their operation. The Kentwood site was an ideal location for the company and meets their requirements of needing rail access for shipping.

Known as a premier Design/Build industrial contractor in West Michigan, Wolverine designed the new facility and oversaw construction. The plant floor and loading dock areas, in particular, were designed to handle the specialized equipment used in their day to day operation. One special feature was the use of imbedded steel rail in the floor to assist in automatic movement of the finished product throughout different areas of the plant. Many miles of wire and piping were also placed below the floor to feed the equipment during operation. Considerations were also given in the design phase to maximize efficiency throughout the facility. Windows were placed in the plant area to allow the entrance of natural light and high output fluorescent light fixtures were installed. The light fixtures provide 30% more light, but use less than half the energy of conventional industrial metal halide light fixtures. A heat recovery system was installed to capture heat given off from the corrugation line and disperse it throughout the winter months or exhaust out the extra heat in the summer months. The building shell consists of a pre-engineered steel building with a standing seam roof and metal wall panel system.

There is also a two-story, 21,000 square foot office for administration purposes. In addition the 15,800 square feet of the interior finished support space in the plant, consist of plant offices, restrooms, a training room, break room, quality control lab, scheduling department, and control rooms. A glass curtain wall, decorative horizontal metal wall panels, aluminum, eyebrow-sunscreens, and a curved roof entry canopy will adorn the exterior of the office area.

The building features 26 loading docks, complete with hydraulic dock levelers and truck restraints that are designed to handle both inbound and outbound freight.