Americold Realty Trust’s Russellville, Arkansas fully automated facility has been recognized as the winner of the 2024 Built By The Best Award by the Controlled Environment Building Association (CEBA). This award further highlights Americold’s best-in-class design, innovation in construction, and operational capabilities, after this facility was recently named Site of the Year by one of Americold’s largest customers for its flawless startup and ramp to full capacity.
The Built By The Best Award is the premier honor recognizing groundbreaking construction projects within the controlled environment sector. Americold, in conjunction with Stellar, constructed this highly automated 136,000-square-foot, 140-foot-tall cold storage and distribution facility at its existing Russellville location, adding 42,000 pallet positions and 13 million cubic feet to the facility.
This multimillion-dollar project features a leading-edge ammonia refrigeration system, insulated metal panel (IMP) exterior walls, an automated truck unloading system, an advanced fire protection system, and a state-of-the-art automated storage and retrieval system (ASRS) that integrates seamlessly with the gantry and loop connections to the loading docks. The expansion also introduced a modern breakroom, offices, and a conference room while prioritizing sustainability with energy-efficient systems and a 25% reduction in water use.
“This facility was built with state-of-the-art automation to support production and the supply chain for one of North America’s leading branded food companies. We continue to innovate to provide best-in-class service for our customers and recognition like this is a testament to the design, build, and operating capabilities of our automation group as we continue to grow and help our customers feed the world.”
George Chappelle, Chief Executive Officer, Americold
Americold is a temperature-controlled logistics real estate and value-added service. It focuses on the ownership, operation, acquisition, and development of temperature-controlled warehouses, Americold owns and operates 239 temperature-controlled warehouses, with approximately 1.5 billion refrigerated cubic feet of storage. Americold’s facilities are an integral component of the supply chain connecting food producers, processors, distributors, and retailers to consumers.