As a construction and fit out partner to the Food & beverage Industry, Total Construction this year celebrates 30 years servicing the building sector and providing advice, guidance and construction services to clients both large and small as they have grown and expanded their businesses.
Steve Taylor and Bill Franks started Total Construction in 1995 from a small office located in Wetherill Park NSW. From the get-go Total was positioned to be a specialist builder focusing on select clients that were looking for a builder that would provide more than just construction services.
Total’s first clients included the likes of Rheem and Kennards Self Storage, where Total quickly became knowledgeable in designing and constructing special-purpose facilities. Knowledge gained in constructing self-storage facilities, in particular, was invaluable. Understanding the process flow of people and materials expected in the finished facilities was critical when reviewing designs and delivering projects.
Total entered the food and beverage sector in 2008 with the same vigour and focus it had displayed in the self-storage construction space; by understanding that to service the sector effectively it would need industry specialists in house. Employing in-house food literate process engineers with a wealth of knowledge in the food industry, and by engaging specialist trades with experience in the sector, became a recipe for success.
Total knew using this approach to construction in the food and beverage sector, would pay off, and successfully won its first major food and beverage project, which was at George Western Foods’ facility located at Gateshead NSW.
The project scope was to build an extension to house a new bread line, and required some smart thinking around how the building itself enveloped the proposed new line and ensuring the correct services were in place without hindering GWF’s current operation. The project went to plan, and the learnings Total gained was the beginning of a long phase of knowledge and experience gathering that has seen Total become one of the leading players in the F&B construction and fit-out space.
Over 17 years, the team has delivered transformative projects for some of the most recognisable names in the industry, including Arnott’s, Cadbury, Coca-Cola, Alpha Flight Catering (now Dnata), Goodman Fielder, Woolworths, Peters Ice Cream, Schweppes, and
Asahi. Most recently, they began construction on an innovative indoor farm for Stacked Farm, a leading agritech business.
One of the most valuable lessons Total Construction has learned over the past 17 years working on F&B projects is the importance of early involvement in the project. Traditionally, clients would design their process, order equipment, and only then engage a builder to adapt an outdated or incompatible building design – often leading to costly compromises. Total Construction takes a different approach: an “inside-out” methodology. By first understanding and optimising the process flow, the building is then designed to wrap around the equipment – not the other way around. After all, it’s the production process that generates revenue, not the structure itself. Poorly planned layouts can lock in inefficiencies for the life of the facility, impacting overall equipment effectiveness.
To achieve a smooth project progression and to avoid potential glitches in delivery, Total has learned the best scenario is for a client to involve a builder early in the process and review the layout against the buildability of the building. This detailed review can reveal any roadblocks, issues, and/or clashes in the building’s proposed design with the client’s proposed production processes.
Drawing from this experience, Total has developed a unique Early Contractor Involvement (ECI) model. In addition to the standard elements of design, costing, and value engineering, Total’s F&B ECI process incorporates detailed process flow evaluation, equipment services planning, and tailored construction methodology – all developed in collaboration with the client’s operational, safety, and management teams. This front-end planning approach has consistently delivered seamless outcomes for food and beverage projects across the country.
If a client is looking to move into a Brownfield site (an existing building such as a warehouse requiring a food and beverage fit out), Total can, as part of the feasibility stage, review the proposed facility. Total is looking for such things as adequate power and gas availability, as well as check the building’s structure to confirm it can carry heavy loads such as evaporators and equipment services. Total will also review the building’s design against proposed process flows and operational movements and advise of any potential bottlenecks that may occur due to the building’s design limitations.
Total’s extensive food and beverage industry knowledge and experience gained in working within the industry, has seen it grow from strength-to-strength and become a well-respected construction partner for the industry.