CASE STUDY

Teccon and Hi-Level Mezzanines help major logistics company

to deliver

Introduction

Teccon is a leading industrial equipment supplier and one

of the UK’s most successful Dexion centres. Products

and services range from the design and installation of

mezzanine floors, racking & shelving systems and office

partitioning to various storage systems and a host of

industrial products.

Based in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, Teccon has over 20

years’ experience in supplying some of the UK’s leading

companies including BT, Sainsburys, Caterpillar, Exel,

Panasonic, Rolls Royce and Bookers, to name but a few.

The Challenge

The Technology Division of a major logistics company

based in Milton Keynes took the decision to close a

200,000 ft² warehouse facility, from which it had been

running an important software supplier contract.

It needed to relocate this part of the business to another

existing technology distribution facility in the same town.

In order to accommodate the increased business, this

facility needed to increase its capacity substantially.

When the logistics company weighed up the options it

became clear that a mezzanine floor within the existing

facility would: provide the capacity required, would be

cost-effective to install, would improve the productivity of

the site and, importantly, the upgraded facilities could be

brought on-stream very quickly.

The real challenge however, was to accomplish both the

installation of the new mezzanine and the relocation of

the warehouse stock to the new facility without disrupting

either the existing warehouse operation or the service

levels agreed under the software company’s contract.

The Requirement

It was decided to install a two-tier mezzanine to allow for

further expansion in the future. This would provide an

additional 37,000 ft² of floor area with a loading rating of

5.0kN/m² allowing for storage and light industrial use.

The floors had to incorporate seven staircases and six

pallet gates together with full safety protection systems.

Before the final specification could be agreed the con-

crete floor needed to be tested for strength and suitability

How a new multi-tier mezzanine floor is providing a cost-effective alternative to relocating and helping

to improve productivity

and then detailed plans would be needed for Building

Regulations approval.

In addition to the mezzanine, the main contractor was to

be responsible for the efficient installation of all other

services including ducting, fresh air, all electrics, fabrica-

tion of offices and a Board Room, 560 bays of shelving

and fire protection including a sprinkler system.

Initially, the project was scheduled to start in January

2007, with a target date for completion of July 2007. The

timescale was very tight for a project of this complexity

but it was driven by the need to close the existing

warehouse facility by the end of July 2007 at the latest.

The Solution

The logistics company invited three businesses to tender

for the project. Given the complexity of the project and

the very tight deadline, Teccon needed to partner with a

mezzanine manufacturing company that was technically

competent, reliable and able to react very quickly.

Richard Bentall, Senior Account

Manager at Teccon comments, “In

the end it wasn’t a difficult decision

to go with Hi-Level. We’ve worked

successfully with them in the past

so we knew we could rely on them

to provide the design and technical

support we needed. And, as a

leading manufacturer, we also

knew that they could handle a

project of this scale.”

Teccon and Hi-Level were

ultimately successful in the

selection process due to their

proactive approach, innovative

thinking and flexibility. “It was their

willingness to engage with us to

identify the project requirements

and to make positive suggestions

which finally convinced us that

they were the right partner for this

“It wasn’t a difficult decision to go with Hi-Level. We’ve worked

successfully with them in the past so we knew we could rely on

them to provide the design and technical support we needed.”

“The flexibility and excellent understanding built up between our teams ensured that the project

was delivered on budget and ahead of schedule”.

critical project,” comments the logistics company’s

Project Manager.

By the time the selection process had been completed

and the necessary guarantees and warranties put in

place for the landlord, the maximum site time available

before the immovable deadline was just 16 weeks.

In addition to the original project requirements, tests on

the concrete floor revealed the need to strengthen it

considerably to take the weight of the double floor

mezzanine concentrated on columns spaced at 6m

intervals. This meant that 16m piles beneath each

column were needed to take the weight of the mezza-

nine and all this additional work had to be completed

within the 16 week period.

Using its unique QD3 Pro mezzanine design manage-

ment system, Hi-Level developed a programme of work

that detailed precisely which elements of the build would

be completed by when, and co-ordinated this plan with

Teccon to ensure that the work could be done without

undue disruption to the warehouse, which needed to

continue normal operations during the construction of the

new mezzanine.

The Implementation

Due to the very tight deadlines, channels of communica-

tion were kept short with senior level, decision-maker

contacts established to ensure that complex issues were

identified and dealt with without delay.

Hi-Level took responsibility for producing detailed plans

for the mezzanine and then handled all Building Regula-

tions applications and approvals while Teccon coordinat-

ed all associated services.

Hi-Level Mezzanines Ltd, Unit 6, Petersfield Business Park, Bedford Road, Petersfield, Hampshire, GU32 3QA

T: +44 (0)1730 233223 | F: +44 (0)1730 231311 | E: sales@hi-level.co.uk | W: www.hi-level.co.uk

About Hi-Level Mezzanines

Founded in 1991, Hi-Level Mezzanines is a leading supplier

of mezzanine flooring. The company’s mezzanine floors

incorporate high specification components as standard and

comply with BRE Digest 437 and other relevant kite marks.

Hi-Level’s unique, mezzanine production system manages

projects from start to finish, automatically calculating the best

floor design and the precise amount of materials required -

ensuring the most cost-effective use of materials to keep

build costs down.

In order to comply with strict Health & Safety require-

ments at the warehouse and out of consideration for

neighbouring businesses, the whole work area was

protected with barriers, and sheeting was erected to limit

the spread of dust from the site works.

All drilling of the concrete slab and piling work was

completed by specialist contractors working overnight to

limit the impact of noise, vibration and dust and Hi-

Level’s installation teams worked in shifts around the

clock to ensure that the project progressed according to

the schedule.

As soon as the piling was completed at one end of the

site, Hi-Level’s mezzanine floor installation teams

started the build process working with teams of special-

ists installing all the other services.

Regular site meetings with all key personnel ensured

that as issues were identified they were quickly resolved

and, throughout the whole build process, delays were

kept to an absolute minimum.

The logistics company Project Manager was delighted

with the way the project progressed, “Without the direct

lines of communication at all levels from the top down

and the willingness to find solutions as issues arose or

changes to specifications were needed, this project

simply couldn’t have been delivered on time. The

flexibility and excellent understanding built up between

our teams ensured that the project was delivered on

budget and ahead of schedule”.

The Results

The whole project from initial order to completion was

delivered in just under 16 weeks. The logistics company

has been able to relocate its software contract business

in its entirety without any negative impact on service

levels for this or any of its other technology contracts.

The consolidation of its technology distribution facilities

has produced very significant operational and financial

benefits. The relatively low cost of the installation

combined with the efficiency gains from greatly increas-

ing the usable space within an existing facility mean that

the pay-back period on the investment will be extremely

short.