Boeing is the most well-known manufacturer in Everett, Wash., and the surrounding Snohomish County. While aerospace dominates the county’s manufacturing scene, manufacturers of all shapes and sizes call the region home.
Manufacturing is a core economic component in Snohomish and Skagit counties in northwestern Washington state. In fact, the Economic Alliance of Skagit County reports that 22% of its workforce is related to the manufacturing sector. That’s more than twice the Washington state average.
Much of that manufacturing work is done in the northern half of Snohomish County, from Everett and northward to Smokey Point, Granite Falls and Arlington. In Skagit County, manufacturing operations are concentrated in (but not limited to) Anacortes, Mount Vernon, Burlington and Sedro-Woolley.
Yet no matter where your manufacturing business is located, when constructing a new facility or improving an existing plant, you want a contractor who takes into consideration the standards of quality of your industry demands.
From clean rooms to DOD secure spaces, you want a commercial general contractor with experience in the manufacturing sector to meet the stringent requirements required for your industry.
Clean rooms
The International Standards Organization (ISO) classifies clean rooms from 1 being the cleanest to 9 being the “dirtiest” – relatively speaking. The goal of a clean room is to control the particulate matter in the room, measured down to microns.
Clean rooms can be as large as a factory floor or isolated to accommodate one specific piece of equipment, but the strict requirements for keeping a clean room clean begin with construction.
Before your contractor ever swings a hammer, all the major systems for the clean room must be thought through, from HVAC to IT. The floor plan should be optimized for your operation, and construction materials and finishes should be considered as materials will contribute to the particulates in the room.
Once construction is underway, keeping the site tidy and free from as much dust as possible from the outset should be a priority for your contractor. The standards for cleanliness become more stringent as construction progresses. Where workers may initially be required to wear booties on their shoes, they will eventually graduate to full clean room protection: a full smock or coveralls, plus hairnets and gloves.
These are just a sampling of considerations your commercial contractor will need to address when on your project. It pays to work with a contractor with clean room expertise.
Climate control
Whether looking to build a refrigerated space or a temperature- and humidity-controlled dry room, your business will benefit from having a knowledgeable commercial contractor on your team.
Refrigerated spaces are used not only for cold storage but also data centers, storage for compressed gas, volatile liquid production and aircraft manufacturing.
Climate-controlled storage facilities and dry rooms with ultra-low humidity, for manufacturing products such as lithium ion batteries, are other applications where smart planning from the outset is required.
Considerations for any kind of climate-controlled space may include IECC energy codes and selection of insulation materials plus floorplan layout to maximize operational and system efficiencies. The right contractor will have the contacts for these subcontractors, so you don’t have to sweat the details.
DOD secure spaces
Attention to detail is a must in designing and constructing secure facilities or secure spaces that meet the Department of Defense’s stringent requirements.
Secure spaces are essentially “buildings within buildings” designed to prevent unauthorized access to equipment, materials, documents and electronic signatures.
These spaces require a “six-sided” approach that takes into account walls, floors, ceilings, doors, windows and ductwork/pipes. For instance, ductwork over a certain size requires a welded metal grating over access points. Perimeter doors require not only access control measures but also must meet acoustic requirements.
This kind of detailed planning means you’ll need to be aware of the wide scope and often sizeable budget that go along with such requirements. A competent commercial contractor will be able to help you manage both scope and budget.
It can also pay to work with a commercial general contractor with the capabilities to both design and build your project, so those scope and cost considerations are dialed in from the beginning.
Experience is key
With a focus on advanced manufacturing, including composites and precision tools for industries such as aerospace and marine, plus supporting ag in standard processing and value-added products, Chad Fisher Construction has the knowledge and experience to build your manufacturing facility to suit the specifications of your industry.
Check out the links below to see examples of some of the projects we’ve managed and constructed requiring special attention to industry requirements. And, if you’re ready to find out how we can help build your next manufacturing facility in Everett or north to the Canadian border contact us today.
Here is a small sampling of the projects we’ve worked on in the manufacturing sector:
Hexcel Corp.
Hexcel is a vertically integrated worldwide manufacturer of tooling and finished aircraft structures with plants around the globe. Chad Fisher Construction has partnered on two expansion projects at Hexcel’s Burlington, Wash., location, and is set to begin a third. Features include two ISO Level 8 clean rooms, climate-controlled IT room and 2,200-square-foot freezer for material storage, along with offices, break room and fitness room for employees.
Team Corp.
Team Corp. is the industry leader in multi-axis and specialty vibration systems with global product representation in more than 20 countries. Team Corp. contracted with Chad Fisher Construction to build an expansion warehouse to house a large capacity overhead crane, and included a special foundation to accommodate large CNC machines.
Janicki Industries, Inc.
Janicki Industries designs and builds high-precision parts and tooling for aerospace, marine, wind, energy and transportation customers specializing in composite materials and exotic metals. Chad Fisher Construction has worked with Janicki on several projects, including a 7,000-square-foot enclosure for an autoclave, a 9,600-square-foot clean room and 45,000-square-foot warehouse with large-scale curing oven.
Chad Fisher Construction is a commercial general contractor located in Skagit County, Washington. Contact us for more information on how we can assist you with your project.