Scotsburn Dairy | Agropur Dairy Cooperative

Project Overview

Agropur | Scotsburn is the largest dairy processing and storage facility in Nova Scotia, located in Truro. Over the years, Sealand has been involved in several major projects on this site, contributing to the expansion and modernization of the facility. This CFIA-approved facility supports a wide range of food processing and storage needs.

Major projects completed on this site include:

• 1992 Distribution Centre: 30,000 SF
• 1994 Cold Storage Expansion: 20,000 SF
• 2000 Ice Cream Processing Facility: 27,543 SF
• 2002 Multi-Temp Storage Expansion: 30,000 SF
• 2005 Dry Storage + Processing Facility: 29,871 SF
• 2009 Cold Storage + Loading Dock: 25,463 SF

In addition to these, Sealand has completed numerous smaller projects within the facility. The design for the Storage and Dock areas was based on the material handling system provided by the Owner. The building heights varied across different projects. The building shells feature conventional structural steel frames wrapped in insulated metal panels with built-up roof assemblies. The Cold Storage floor assemblies include wear slabs, rigid insulation, HD vapor barriers, and glycol subfloor heating systems encapsulated in concrete mud slabs.

Key Features

Facility Layout: Over the years, the facility has expanded to include various key areas such as distribution centers, cold storage, ice cream processing, multi-temp storage, dry storage, and loading docks.

Building Design: The building shells feature conventional structural steel frames wrapped in insulated metal panels with built-up roof assemblies. Cold Storage areas include wear slabs, rigid insulation, HD vapor barriers, and glycol subfloor heating systems encapsulated in concrete mud slabs.

Process Areas: Designed to accommodate the process equipment provided by the Owner, with building heights varying across different areas. The process areas feature a suspended insulated metal panel (IMP) walk-on ceiling system, creating large interstitial spaces for mechanical, electrical, and process equipment work packages.

Office and Operations Areas: Built to commercial-grade standards, featuring change rooms, smock areas, washrooms, locker rooms, lunchroom, laundry, QC lab, and general offices.

Sealand’s Role

Sealand was engaged to provide a design-build turn-key project for the building shell only. The Owner directly managed the Mechanical, Fire Suppression, Refrigeration, and Electrical work packages. Sealand’s responsibilities included overseeing all aspects of pre-construction (planning, design, permitting, cost estimation, scheduling, procurement), construction (management, health & safety, quality control, schedule management, and handover), and project closeout (startup & commissioning, verification, warranty administration, owner training, and delivery of operation and maintenance manuals) related to the building shell.

Sealand also self-performed several critical work packages, including:

• Installation of Insulated Metal Panels for walls and ceilings
• Cut & Patch Trade Openings
• Installation of Thermal Isolation Blocks and Vapor Barriers
• Construction of Insulated Floors
• Installation of Perimeter Eave Details
• Metal siding, Rough Carpentry, and Finish Carpentry

Challenges and Solutions

Challenges: The projects spanned over several years with varied scopes, which required flexible and adaptive construction management. The design and construction needed to meet evolving standards and Owner requirements, particularly as technology and regulatory standards advanced.

Solutions: Sealand’s long-term involvement and familiarity with the site allowed for efficient project execution, ensuring that each phase of development was completed successfully and in line with the Owner’s expectations.

Project Details

Client: Agropur Dairy Cooperative | Scotsburn Dairy

Location: Truro, Canada

Project Type: Design Build Lump Sum

Building Area: 194,473 SF

Budget: $15 Million

Project Duration: Multiple Projects (1992 to 2018)

Number of Trades: 5 to 25 per day