Panabad: from an empty plot to a logistics plant designed from scratch

Building a logistics warehouse on an empty plot requires design decisions to be made at a much earlier stage than in an extension or an industrial refurbishment. That is what we did for Panabad, since the project literally started from scratch.

The company, a manufacturer and distributor of frozen part-baked bread, viennoiserie and artisan pastries, has a production centre in Sabadell. But in order to grow it needed to build a new logistics warehouse in Sant Quirze to strengthen its operational capacity: 3000 m2 to meet the company's real operational needs, with a large cold room, preparation areas, loading docks and all the ancillary spaces needed for the whole to work logically.

When we at ALTERTECNIA took on the Panabad project, we knew that the right decisions had to be made from minute one and, moreover, with a forward-looking vision to turn the new building into an efficient infrastructure ready for day-to-day work.

The starting point: understanding the site before designing

Designing an industrial plant from scratch begins with an accurate reading of the plot. Before defining the building, it is necessary to know precisely the real conditions of the land: its geometry, its contour lines and the physical constraints that will affect the siting of the building.

That is why one of the first phases of the project is the topographic survey. That information does not remain a reference drawing; instead, it is used within the BIM methodology to start working on a real basis. From there, the project begins to be built digitally with the real conditions of the plot already integrated.

This way of working has a clear advantage in industrial construction: it makes it possible to coordinate geometry, volumes, levels, structure and usage requirements within a single project environment from the outset. Instead of progressing through disconnected layers, we work with a model that helps decisions to be made with greater control and the implications of each adjustment to be detected earlier.

Other decisive constraints are then added to that base: the boundaries, the distances to neighbours and roads, the maximum buildable area and the permitted height. All of this defines the real framework of the project.

In a case such as Panabad, the objective was clear: to make the most of the available plot to obtain the greatest possible capacity without compromising the operational logic of the future plant.

How to make the most of the space

With the topography already incorporated into the model and the planning parameters defined, the next step is to take the plot to its maximum buildable potential. This means working with the available area, the permitted volume and the maximum height to obtain the greatest possible usable capacity.

At Panabad, this issue carried particular weight because of the presence of a large cold room. Fortunately, it is not the first of its kind that we have built.

In this type of facility, the clear height has a direct impact on storage capacity: the greater the height available within the regulatory framework, the more pallets can be accommodated within the same built footprint.

This volumetric definition is accompanied by another decision typical of the logistics typology: raising the building to accommodate the loading docks. The floor level is not set purely on geometric criteria, but also in relation to dispatch and receiving operations.

In this phase, the design translates buildability into real capacity. In a plant such as Panabad's, this requires adjusting area, height and levels from the outset so that the building meets the needs of storage and goods movement.

Designing the building: volume, height and intended use

Once the buildable framework has been set, the design moves on to the configuration of the building according to what it will contain and how it will operate. In a logistics plant, the building is not defined as an abstract volume, but on the basis of its real storage, circulation and dispatch needs.

In this phase the main elements of the brief are arranged: the cold room, the anteroom, the loading docks, the ancillary areas and the plant rooms.

Each of these areas requires specific dimensions, proximity relationships and operating conditions. The building is designed from the operational logic.

In the Panabad project, this phase was particularly important because the plant had to serve a very clearly defined logistics activity. The presence of a large cold room and the need to optimise capacity and flows meant that the building had to be tailored to that intended use from the outset.

It is essential to understand what developing a logistics plant from scratch involves, and how each initial decision determines the capacity, siting and subsequent operation of the building.

At ALTERTECNIA we develop industrial projects based on the real needs of each client, with a global vision, from the plot to the functional definition of the building. If you are thinking of building an industrial facility, get in touch with our team and we will help you make the best decisions for your project.