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Since the brewery’s inception in 2002, the Southern Tier Brewing Co. in Lakewood, N.Y., has rapidly grown, producing more than 30,000 barrels of beer annually. When the brewery’s owners, Phineas
(“Phin”) and Sara De- Mink sought a new customized brewery, they chose design-build contractor, Kessel Construction Inc.
Three phases of construction were planned from the start. The first to be built was a 19,250-squarefoot structure for the brewery. The DeMinks needed to install more equipment in space tailored to their needs. In an area where winter temperatures can remain below freezing for months at a time, energy efficiency was an important concern. And with the company’s growing success, it would be ideal to have a building that was easy to expand. As a result, the design team chose Butler Manufacturing’s Widespan structural system with column-free space to allow for future expansion. It also accommodated a 2,600-square-foot mezzanine for long-term storage. The facility was topped with a low-maintenance CMR-24 standing seam roof system, including rigid board insulation with an insulating value of R-19, and an interior steel liner panel, giving the plant ceiling a clean, finished look.
For the exterior, Kessel created high-thermal composite walls consisting of Butler’s Shadowall wall system, rigid board insulation with an insulating value of R-15.8, and metal liner panels for the interior walls. Outside, the Shadowall panels were accented with architectural stone veneer and wainscoting of a concrete material with a wood-like appearance. The Empty Pint, Southern Tier’s popular pub, originally was intended to be a separate structure. As the plans evolved, however, it became a timber structure fit within the initial building itself, and its architectural focal point. A slate tile floor, stone bar and custom-fitted cabinetry along one wall to hold gift items complete the décor.
A cozy and comfortable retreat in winter, the pub opens onto a paved outdoor patio for warmer weather. “Post-and-beam construction was used to build the pub structure, and it was carried over to the outdoor patio extending from it,” says Al Webster, Kessel’s technical advisor.
A dramatic timber canopy capped with Butler’s MR-24 metal roof panels and translucent panels extends over the patio, and a similar, smaller canopy was used for the building’s main entrance. Phase II included a 7,500-square-foot conditioning room for the brewery with its own 1,600-squarefoot mezzanine to support a box erector and bottling line. Because climate control was critical in this area, Kessel gave it a ThermaLiner insulation system, best described as a “metal sandwich,” a thick fiberglass blanket between an MR-24 roof system and interior metal liner panels matching the ceiling of the main plant. It delivered an insulating value of R-25.
The company is presently reconfiguring the offices and mezzanine space within the original building. The eventual Phase III will be a new 17,500-square-foot production room. “The structures-the first and the new addition-have all been planned to receive the expansion,” says Webster. “Everything, through the zoning and the structural plans, is already in place.”
General contractor: Kessel Construction Inc., Bradford, Pa.
Engineer: E&M Engineers, Bradford
Pre-engineered metal building system: Butler Manufacturing, Kansas City, Mo., www.butlermfg.com
