A M King completes construction of Cheney Bros.' South Carolina facility
Installation of a robotic forklift battery exchanger carousel is a first for Cheney Bros.’ facilities.
A M King, a national, fully integrated design-build firm, has completed design and construction of its fourth major project for Cheney Bros. Inc. The 386,047-square-foot refrigerator/freezer distribution facility in Florence, S.C., includes 45 loading docks, a Cheney Express and the largest culinary kitchen the company has developed to date.
Part of Performance Food Group, Cheney Bros., based in Riviera Beach, Fla., was founded in 1925. In 2016, the company purchased Pate Dawson Co., acquiring distribution and processing facilities in Statesville, N.C., and Greensboro, N.C.
Cheney Bros.’ Florence facility
Cheney Brothers’ first location in South Carolina, the Florence facility is located on nearly 50 acres in the Pee Dee Commerce City East Industrial Park — across I-95 from Buc-ee’s. The new distribution center provides means for the broadline distributor to significantly expand its reach in the region.
“It has been a pleasure working with A M King over the years while they have helped us grow our footprint here in the Carolinas with the best buildings in the industry," said Mike Turner, Cheney Bros.’ Florence facility president.
Warren Newell, Cheney Bros.’ director of development, said, “I have worked with dozens of design-build and construction firms over the years, and I can honestly say that A M King is one of the finest. They designed and constructed a first-class distribution center for us in Florence, which will strengthen our ability to serve Southeast Atlantic coastal customers.”
A M King Vice President David Sawicki said, “We were thrilled to partner with Cheney Bros. to develop a facility of this magnitude and complexity. Our history of successful projects for CBI, along with our depth and breadth of food industry expertise, made this an ideal venture.”
Project highlights
Scope of work included:
- 100,963 square feet of dry storage and a 36,098-square-foot dry dock
- 90,095-square-foot freezer
- 60,683 square feet of cooler with separate rooms and temperatures for dairy/meat, flour and produce
- 31,533-square-foot cooler dock
- 30,424 square feet of office spaces
- 7,142-square-foot Cheney Express with walk-in cooler
- 3,364-squre-ffot test kitchen.
A M KIng also designed space for future expansion at the facility, including a 75,305-squre-foot cooler-freezer; 47,856 square feet of dry warehouse and a 6,620-squre-foot unfinished mezzanine.
The installation of a robotic forklift battery exchanger carousel --- a first for Cheney Bros.’ facilities --- improves productivity and safety.
A M King’s past projects for Cheney Bros. include two major expansions at their Statesville facility, bringing the total square footage to 342,126. The projects comprised additional cold storage and dry warehouse space, a 2,000-square-foot commercial culinary center, cutting-edge penthouse refrigeration system, 37 new dock positions and a new receiving office. The complexity of these projects was heightened by the fact that all work was performed in an operational distribution center.
A M King's design-build team also transformed a vacant shell building in Greensboro into a state-of-the-art food processing facility for Cheney Bros.’ affiliate Southern Foods.
A M King currently has a project underway for Cheney Bros. in Florida and has completed design and commenced construction on a 78,000-square-foot USDA-certified food processing facility in Pompano Beach, Fla. The project will feature dedicated spaces for meat and poultry, five loading docks, a Cheney Express and test kitchen.
Source: A M King
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