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Penntex Construction
SUSTAINABLE CONSTRUCTION Founder John Pregmon beleives in efficiency and is a critic of waste, which has led the company to focus on sustainable construction. Penntex is on a mission to get the construction industry serious about going green.
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Penntex Construction Company by Johanna Gretschel
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hile most trends come and go, there are two construction LEED certified bakery in the world, but it also boasts state-of-the-art design trends that are now standards: sustainability and compressed efficiency for incorporating technology that benefits both TastyKake and project delivery timelines. Sustainability, commonly referred the building’s owner, Liberty Property Trust. to as green building, fits well with Penntex Construction, a The bakery is a customized warehouse that includes freezer space and medium-sized company based in Pennsylvania. seven linear baking lines. Each line consists of mixing equipment, ovens, John Pregmon, founder of Penntex, has always been a proponent of efficiency cooling conveyors and packaging equipment. and a critic of waste. His philosophy is consistent with the movement toward Senior project managers Ric Zappan and Dwight Lewis oversaw the project ecologically responsible construction as defined by the U.S. Green Building which included installation of significant infrastructure components such Council and the increased conservation requirements of modern building codes. As such, Penntex employs project managers who are Green Advantage Certified Practitioners and LEED Accredited Professionals. The company takes a leading role in sustainable, responsible FEATURES INCLUDED UNDER LEED STANDARDS: construction practices, specializing in office, warehouse, A white, reflective roof, which minimizes heat-absorbing surfaces that manufacturing and medical facilities. A significant example is their recent completion of the TastyKake baking facility, contribute to global warming. constructed in the former Philadelphia Naval Yard. This No-mow, drought-resistant grass that uses less water. single-story, 36-foot clear height, 345,000 sq. ft. facility replaces an 88-year-old, six-story building which was located in the All of the wood doors and half of the wood used in the building come from Hunting Park area of Philadelphia. Not only is it the largest certified sustainable sources that work to conserve trees.
TASTYKAKE PROJECT INFO
Paints and carpeting with low chemical content that reduce ear, nose and throat irritation. Refrigeration equipment using environmentally friendly refrigerants to minimize emissions that contribute to global warming. Covered parking lot lights that reduce light pollution; bike racks and access to public transportation that reduce vehicle usage and pollution. Solar panels on the roof that provide power to several of the building’s systems. WWW.TASTYKAKE.COM
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as stormwater, sanitary and electric services. The two have over sixty years of combined construction experience. A significant challenge was to coordinate the efforts of multiple engineers into the working bakery. This work included thousands of feet of ingredient piping, equipment service piping and electrical and control wiring. All along the construction process, LEED points were evaluated for their upfront costs, payback savings, and intrinsic value as responsible practice. “We wanted to be ahead of the curve and be more helpful to our clients who want to investigate and build in a green fashion,” said Brian Belcher, long time partner to Pregmon. Converting the construction industry to building green is picking up momentum and many conservation features are being integrated into new 1-4. TastyKake Baking Company, Philadelphia, Pa. The world’s largest green bakery. Photo courtesy of Penntex Construction Company. 5-11. TastyKake Baking Company, Philadelphia, Pa. Inside the factory. Assembly processes.
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12 building codes. Penntex stands as a committed industry leader in increasing sustainability through conservation practices by integrating the latest monitoring, technologies and products. The company prides itself on being able to offer their clients thorough past experience in the unending search for balance between sustainability, upfront costs and payback savings when working with budgets. The good news is that green construction is becoming more economically viable. It helps to lower overall energy and water bills, and reduces maintenance and equipment replacement costs. In addition, a LEED certified building provides improved air quality, and often more natural lighting and superior user comfort. These are all factors that boost employee productivity and health, thus reducing absenteeism. The decision to apply for LEED certification is entirely at the discretion of the owner; however, Penntex always stands ready to provide valuable engineering ideas with an eye toward green practice. Penntex has completed a number of LEED certified buildings in recent years, ranging from standard LEED Certified to LEED Silver. Two examples include a four-story, 105,000 sq. ft. office building in Mount Laurel, N.J. and a 920,000 sq. ft. warehouse facility in Breinigsville, Pa. While LEED requirements have recently been updated and the standards are more challenging, Lewis says the added difficulty has only caused Penntex to work even harder to meet LEED requirements and follow the documentation process required for every LEED project. 12. Hildacy. 1031 Palmers Mill Road, Media, Pa. One of the original LEED green buildings built in the Philadelphia regions. It serves as the administrative headquarters of Natural Land Trust. 13. Highview Corporate Center. 200 & 400 Campus Drive, Collegeville, Pa. Two buildings that total 184,000 sq. ft. and were originally built for and occupied by Wyeth Labs, now Pfizer Corporation.
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THE WITMER COMPANY The Witmer Company, in operation since 1941, is a full service plumbing, heating, ventilation and air conditioning contractor servicing both commercial and residential clients. From their base of operation in New Holland, Pa., Witmer offers complete, in-house design/build capabilities, providing professional, startto-finish solutions for commercial, new construction, expansion, and renovation projects. Be it ownership, office staff, or field personnel, The Witmer Company understands, and strives to exceed their customers’ expectations, which has helped them build strong relationships with quality general contractors such as Penntex Construction. The Witmer Company is proud to have partnered with Penntex on several projects including The Home Depot, Smuckers, and FedEx distribution centers in Breinigsville, Pa. For more information, call 717-354-4281.
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SMITH MILLER ASSOCIATES Fundamental to every building project are engineered building systems. By custom designing these comprehensive systems for a variety of facilities, Smith Miller Associates has achieved an excellent reputation as a design leader. All projects undertaken by SMA are managed and designed by principals and senior engineers which assures that every project will receive the benefits of senior-level experience. SMA is a size-controlled firm that purposely limits the number of active projects undertaken in order to guarantee clients the complete and personal service they expect and deserve. Through comprehensive dialogues
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14 “As a company, we have one goal: establish and understand the needs of our clients and focus all our available resources toward meeting those needs, whether the building will be LEED Certified or not,” said Belcher. “Not every project is going to be LEED Certified, but every building has a function to serve and it is our responsibility to understand that function and get it right the first time.” Another permanent trend in the construction industry is compressed time schedules. According to Lewis, one of the most significant challenges that Penntex faces in its daily operations is expectations of quick turnover and unforgiving construction schedules from tenants and landlords. The old model had a sequence: design, estimate, construct. Then, construction incorporated fast-track methods to reduce the construction schedule. But in today’s world, decisions to build are often made at the last minute and the demand date for the finished product remains fixed. Frequently, the overall time is compressed due to site development and approvals. Penntex was recently commissioned to build a warehouse for Home Depot within a six-month time frame. The site required extensive work as the building was a concrete tilt wall of nearly 500,000 sq. ft., and the office area had not yet been designed. “We moved from a rectangle on a sheet of paper to a finished warehouse without missing a beat,” said Lewis. 14. Home Depot Warehouse Building, Breinigsville, Pa.
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LEVAN ASSOCIATES, INC. Levan Associates, Inc., located in Emmaus, Pa. has been a fabricator and erector of structural steel since 1985. Within their 32,000 sq. ft. fully-automated fabrication facility, teams utilize the CNC Drill Beam line, CNC Angle Master and cambering welding and cutting machinery. Levan currently handles fabrication and welding for projects estimated at 120- 3,600 tons. Levan’s services also include the fabrication and installation of stairs, hand rails and a variety of specialty projects. Their history of high-quality services and extensive experience consists of new construction and additions for commercial, industrial and institutional facilities including schools, hospitals, medical buildings and a recent addition into bridges. Levan Associates’ quality control policy is to provide exceptional products and services on-time that consistently meet or exceed the needs and expectations of their customers in compliance with all American Institute of
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The design, budgeting and construction activities overlapped significantly. Penntex was challenged to think quickly and efficiently, communicating clearly with all parties involved in order to control tight budgets and to avoid mistakes. “You have to be adept at being able to figure out how to push construction while you are still finishing up design,” said Lewis. Construction of the building commenced in mid-January 2009 and Home Depot moved into their new facility on July 7, 2009 as promised- just shy of six months from start of construction. A recent tenant improvement for Amazon required accomplishing $12.4 million of work in a five-month period, where the design, budget and construction phases overlapped. The process was then complicated by the lead time required for certain made-to-order manufactured products including electrical switchgear, fire alarm panels and devices and elevators. In today’s world, inventories are kept low and the manufacturing of certain products involves quick component shipments from disparate facilities to a central assembly plant and then shipment to the project site. Despite all of the challenges encountered, Amazon was in operation on the promised delivery date. “You have to have a strong working knowledge of the demands and constraints of your project in order to meet project turnover 15-16. Exterior and Interior views of a LEED Silver office building, 330 Fellowship Rd, Mount Laurel, NJ. Photos courtesy of Penntex Construction Company.
FABCON Fabcon manufactures high-quality concrete wall panels, highway traffic barriers, columns and sound walls. From schools to manufacturing facilities, Fabcon precast wall panels provide the speed, versatility and thermal performance that impress building owners, architects and general contractors alike. To learn more call (800) 727-4444 or visit www.fabcon-usa.com.
RJ SKELDING CO., INC. Established in 1959, RJ Skelding Co., Inc. has been in business for over 50 years. They are an electrical contractor that specializes in construction and maintenance for industrial, commercial, institutional, municipal, residential high rise, tele-data, high voltage, cell tower installations and upgrades, and utility installations. RJ Skelding is equipped to handle both installation and maintenance of exterior and site lighting. Their capabilities range from simple service calls to complicated design/build projects over $4 million. RJ Skelding services Pennsylvania , New Jersey, and Delaware, and has worked extensively with Penntex Construction on various projects. For more information, call 610-437-4036.
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dates generated by tenants and landlords,” said Lewis. “The more overlap of design, budget formation, and construction, the greater the potential for mistakes. Mistakes cost time and money – two things today’s customers do not have.” Penntex has also stayed on top of technological advances in the field. They’ve increased their use of conference calls and e-mail for communications and sending blueprints. These new coordination efforts help increase documentation and faster turn-around times. “The key is how you use the tools,” Zappan said. “The challenge is to remain the manager of the project, not managed by the project. That’s why people employ us.” CLT 17. Iron Mountain, 1000 Campus Drive, Collegeville, PA. originally built as the headquarters building for pierce Leahy Corporation prior to them being bought by Iron Mountain. Photos courtesy of Penntex Construction Company.
OMNI ELECTRICAL SYSTEMS Omni Electrical Systems is an established electrical construction company. They have provided electrical construction/maintenance to the industrial, commercial, and institutional markets for the past twenty years. At Omni our mission is to achieve customer satisfaction through dedicated project management, highly skilled and well-equipped workforce and a strong commitment to safety. For more information, visit www.oes.bz
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John C. Kohler Co By Joel Cornell
For over 80 years, four generations at John C. Kohler Co. have served the mechanical construction industry with quality and distinction. The first generation of John C Kohler Co. installed some of the piping at the original TastyKake baking plant on Hunting Park Avenue in Philadelphia, Pa. The third and fourth generation at John C. Kohler Co., working as a subcontractor to Penntex, recently completed the process piping and plumbing systems in the new, state-of-the-art plant. John C. Kohler Co. holds their relationship with Penntex Construction in the highest regard. “Penntex has a unique approach of generating a team atmosphere with a focus on achieving the owner’s vision,” said Kevin Kohler. “Despite the challenges the construction industry presents, Penntex efficiently manages projects in an aggressive, yet pleasant and ethical manner.”
“Penntex realized the complexity of the TastyKake project early on and dedicated themselves to leading the difficult coordination. We couldn’t imagine a project as complex as Tastykake without their unique approach,” said Kohler. The process piping for the plant included extensive coordination between manufacturers from Australia, Italy and Germany. In addition to the steam, compressed air and chilled water systems that Kohler installed at the new plant, they installed some of the more unique systems like the chocolate, pie and icing shortening, and thermal oil, among others. In addition to baking, dairy, and rendering plants, John C. Kohler Co. has also done extensive work with the commercial office, retail, school, and government segments of the HVAC and Plumbing industries. They have done extensive work at the King of Prussia mall. Dating back to the ‘70s, Kohler has been involved the construction and nearly every major addition and renovation at King of Prussia Malls. In 1979 they installed DX rooftop units on the Court, later converting the Court to a 3,000 ton central plant chilled water system. This modern and efficient approach offered the client significant savings in operations that paid for the system upgrades in only a few years. A similar 3750-ton chiller water system was installed by Kohler in the Plaza at King of Prussia, and achieved the same results. The Kohler family has always realized that reputation, relationships and success are built in the field, not in the office. “In our company,” Kohler said, “the office works for the field. This is the reverse of how many companies operate. It is for that reason that a family member is always closely involved on every project in the field.” John C. Kohler Co. has performed a wide variety of projects: from chiller plants and school renovations to hospitals and baking plants. No matter how complex the task, John C. Kohler Co. remains dedicated to meeting their clients’ needs in a timely, cost effective and professional manner. CLT
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