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ARCO National Construction
Design-Build Solutions for Purpose-Built Cold Storage
Brian Westre, VPCold storage construction leaves little margin for misalignment. Structural framing, refrigeration systems, vapor barriers, electrical capacity and product flow must function as one coordinated environment from the outset. When these elements are developed independently, incompatibilities surface during construction, driving redesign, cost escalation and schedule disruption.
How does ARCO’s design-build model reduce construction risk and schedule disruption?
ARCO National Construction is structured to address those variables before construction begins. Its design-build model places design, construction, cost management and scheduling within one accountable team from planning through commissioning. Rather than advancing a completed drawing set and reconciling systems in the field, ARCO evaluates how the facility will operate and provides conceptual designs before major capital is committed.
“ARCO’s design-build approach gives clients a single point of responsibility from concept through completion, driving smarter decisions early, reducing risk, and delivering greater cost and schedule certainty,” says Brian Westre, VP.
For operators, that responsibility becomes tangible during preliminary planning. Instead of committing to a fixed configuration, ARCO examines layout options, pallet density targets, clear-height requirements, temperature zoning, refrigeration strategies, power demand and future expansion pathways while decisions remain flexible. Cost modeling progresses alongside these evaluations, allowing alternatives to be compared before development advances. By clarifying scope and infrastructure demands early, owners move forward with clearer financial visibility and fewer midstream adjustments.
Faster Start-Up Through Structured Planning
A renovation for Alpine Food Distributing in Vernon, California, illustrates how this approach translates into speed to market. The 116,766-square-foot conversion transformed existing warehouse space into a cold storage and distribution facility incorporating more than 40,000 square feet of freezer and cooler areas, convertible temperature zones, a production cooler and ambient storage. Delivered in under seven months, the project consolidated and expanded Alpine Foods’ processing operations, increasing output and strengthening product availability across Southern California.
How can coordinated planning accelerate cold storage facility start-up and operational readiness?
ARCO’s design-build approach allows for design, buyout, and construction to occur simultaneously, saving valuable time on the overall project schedule.
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ARCO’s design-build approach provides a single point of responsibility, reducing risk and delivering cost and schedule certainty.
A renovation for Alpine Food Distributing in Vernon, California, illustrates how this approach translates into speed to market. The 116,766-square-foot conversion transformed existing warehouse space into a cold storage and distribution facility incorporating more than 40,000 square feet of freezer and cooler areas, convertible temperature zones, a production cooler and ambient storage. Delivered in under seven months, the project consolidated and expanded Alpine Foods’ processing operations, increasing output and strengthening product availability across Southern California.
Scaling Capacity with Control
How does standardized design support multi-site cold storage expansion for national operators?
ARCO’s design-build process also supports clients with nationwide expansion plans. ARCO applies standardized design parameters, consistent vapor control practices and defined quality benchmarks across facilities, limiting variability as the footprint increases. A nationwide presence and established trade partnerships reinforce execution continuity across regions.
The design-build approach also offers superior cost and schedule benefits compared to projects with traditional delivery methods. For example, a 100,465-square-foot cold storage facility for a grocery wholesaler and foodservice distributor in El Monte, California, was originally designed under a traditional approach with hybrid roof assembly and box-in-a-box cold rooms. Rather than proceeding with the existing configuration, ARCO developed a design-build solution and introduced a layout tailored specifically to temperature-controlled operations.
The revised approach incorporated an open-roof configuration with insulated tilt-up walls, enhanced roof insulation and insulated metal panel walls extending through the deck. Recalibrating structural and refrigeration integration increased top-of-product clear height from 35.5 feet to 40 feet, enabling an additional pallet row and improving storage density.
ARCO delivered the lowest overall project cost among bidders and established a firm price structure that reduced exposure to escalation unless the scope changed. Coordinated sequencing supported completion two months ahead of competing timelines, enabling earlier operational deployment.
With 48 offices nationwide, ARCO combines national purchasing leverage with regional expertise. This structure enables repeat clients to develop temperature-controlled facilities across markets using consistent design standards, established trade partnerships and centralized delivery oversight. Clients including Performance Food Group, Sysco, DHL Supply Chain, and Domino’s rely on this hybrid model to scale cold storage infrastructure with coordinated execution and defined cost and schedule controls.
Structuring decisions before construction begins and maintaining centralized accountability through commissioning, ARCO enables operators to expand capacity with fewer variables, greater predictability and sustained execution continuity.
