RFF December 2011 : Page 29
Inside the Plant To visit Blount’s plant in October was to see employees bustling every-where – from raw goods receiving to finished goods packaging. Then again, still more workers were busily prepping newly finished interior rooms for process equipment and finished goods packaging machinery that had just arrived – or was just about to arrive. Officials say the $13 million expansion made room for a large spi-ral soup chiller, new production line soup fillers and versatile, automated packaging machinery. Blount also has built new temperature-controlled rooms to process, fill and package refrigerated dips, spreads and salads. The project included 46,000 square feet of additional packaging areas as well as freezer storage and cooler storage for raw materials and fin-ished goods. It also created a new shipping/receiving dock and a 12,000-square-foot mezzanine (over packaging lines) for dry storage. Arena says the project – complet-ed in late summer – involved several phases. Each had Blount arranging everyday production around con-struction on the shipping dock, in storage areas and in finished goods handling rooms. By early October, it was clear that the benefits far out-weighed any temporary inconve-nience. Blount’s receiving and ship-ping dock now boasts nine doors instead of four. Expanded freezer and cooler storage means Blount can hold its own inventories (particularly fin-ished goods) longer without relying on nearby third parties. “Knowing that fall brings our larger volume, peak season, we looked to have everything installed and operational by the end of July,” says Arena. “Not all construction was finished on time – yet the pro-cess ended quite smoothly and we had 30 days or so to synchronize activities in our new distribution and production areas . . . There were times when [ongoing construction] was complex but we staged every-thing so we never shut down. “All in all, it’s been a wonderful thing to expand,” he concludes. “We’re still building efficiencies but AT A GLANCE: Blount Fine Foods ADDRESS: 630 Currant Rd., Fall River, Mass. 02720* TOTAL FACILITY: 125,000 square feet PROCESSING: 42,000 square feet PRODUCTION LINES: 6 PACKAGING LINES: 5 DRY WAREHOUSE: 10,000 square feet FINISHED GOODS WAREHOUSE: 50,000 square feet EMPLOYEES: 300 up to 435 in peak season (September through March) PRODUCTS: Refrigerated & frozen soups and chili, refrigerated salads, dips and spreads SCHEDULE: Three shifts, five days a week (peak); two shifts, five days a week (full year) *Note: Fall River is one of three Blount operations. Other locations in Warren, R.I., and Lantana, Fla. www. RFFmag .com Refrigerated & Frozen Foods DECEMBER 2011 29
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