In any business, growth is a measure of success, and no less so than in the beer distribution business where continued growth, whether an increase in dollar sales, volume or even geographical reach, is a mark of excellent performance. Yet when combined with the industry’s rapid consolidation, an ever-expanding list of SKUs and technological change, growth also brings its share of challenges as well--namely, warehouse facilities that become out-dated or no longer fulfill a distributor’s operational or spatial needs.

Houston, TX, USA-based Silver Eagle Distributors, LLC, the second-largest Anheuser-Busch distributor in the country, found that its rapidly growing business had exceeded the capacity of its facility located near downtown Houston, so the company announced plans in 2003 to build a new corporate headquarters and central distribution center on 12 acres of land on Washington Avenue in the northwest area of the city.

Wanting a new facility that was functional, yet also aesthetically and architecturally reflected the company’s first-class image as a top A-B wholesaler, Silver Eagle partnered with St. Louis, MO, USA-based Holleran Duitsman Architects to design the new facility. Founded by architects Jack Holleran and Mark Duitsman in 1986, Holleran Duitsman Architects has become a leading designer of beer distribution facilities nationwide, handling more than 70 beer distribution facility projects for clients such as A-B, Miller and Coors. The architectural firm also has designed more A-B facilities in the US than any other design firm and is familiar with the brewer’s stringent regulations and formula for success, says Mark Duitsman, principle at HDA Architects.

The firm’s expertise in beverage distribution design began in 1994 when the company was hired to design a 275,000-square foot Pepsi-Cola facility in Missouri. According to Patrick Holleran, HDA associate, a local beer distributor was impressed with the new facility and called the manager at the Pepsi-Cola facility to find out who did the design work.

HDA Architects believes it understands the unique needs and challenges of the beverage business, while at the same time striving to go beyond the traditional look of warehouses to design a facility that reflects the company’s personality and image.

“Many of the existing facilities and even those that are being constructed have an industrial feel to them and what we’ve discovered is that they don’t have to feel that way,” notes Holleran. “We feel that we can design a first-class facility that has some of that flair of corporate offices that you see throughout the country and without that appearance of an industrial warehouse.”

For the new Silver Eagle facility, which was a $22-million-dollar project, the architects focused on a contemporary design, incorporating elements of the company’s Southwest roots, by working with natural materials of stone, wood and hammered steel, says Holleran. Using natural materials both on the exterior and interior of the corporate headquarters, HDA Architects was able to reflect the natural environment and rich architectural history of Texas.

“We used natural materials, such as stone, both inside and outside, continuing the stone into the lobby and we used large timbers which are reminiscent of ranches in Texas,” he remarks.

According to the architects, the large stone wall on the front elevation screens the parking garage and becomes a natural material backdrop for the front plaza. The front entry plaza features a linear wood cantilever canopy representative of some of the animal shelters on ranches in rural Texas.
The interior atrium lobby features monolithic limestone walls, slate floors and hammered steel handrails to complement the use of natural materials. Throughout the entire office building, the use of stone columns and wood timbers suggests the rustic timber frame construction reminiscent of pioneer ranches, Holleran explains, and the use of cherry wood doors, trim and furniture complete an inviting and comfortable natural setting for employees and visitors. Metal wall sconces that incorporate the Texas star into the metal framing also add a Texas theme into the contemporary design.

Holleran points out that many beer distributorships, through acquisitions, often inherit facilities that were built 30 or 40 years ago and may not necessarily reflect the company’s image or offer the most state-of-the-art design or functionality. A new facility that reflects the personality and professional image of a distributor like Silver Eagle can be a morale booster to employees, he points out.

Robert Boblitt, Jr., SVP/COO/CFO of Silver Eagle Distributors, says the distinct characteristics of the new corporate headquarters and warehouse, including the unique design and features built into the structure, reflect the distinguished image of the company’s brands.

Beyond the aesthetic look of the building, the new facility provides a more efficient distribution center for Silver Eagle by providing a larger, state-of the-art warehouse space.

“Silver Eagle had several locations where they were storing their product, and this new facility enabled them to consolidate all of those components, which allows more efficiency,” Duitsman says.

However, one of the main design challenges was creating a combination office building and parking garage with an attached warehouse for the distribution center, yet have all of the buildings and structures integrated into the architecture as one single building complex.

To solve this design problem, HDA Architects designed a three-level parking structure with an office on the fourth level, yet a glass and stone façade on the front of the structure creates the illusion of a four-story office building that’s attached to a 350,000-square-foot warehouse, Duitsman says.
As part of its design services, HDA Architects provides an integrated facility development program with the goal of reducing the cost of beer distribution warehouses as well as being a single-source provider.

“In order to design a beer distribution facility, we have to know how they run their business. We need to know how their trucks maneuver, how they pick their products, where the sales staff is going to be located and how the employees enter the building. So there are a lot of variables that you have to learn when designing these facilities,” Holleran notes.

Beverage distribution facilities also have special operational needs that impact the design and construction, such as refrigeration for the beverages as well as mechanical and electrical components, Duitsman adds. And each supplier has its own requirements, such as the beer being stored at a certain temperature or a certain material being used, that makes each design project uniquely different.

Beyond building new distribution facilities, HDA Architects also works with beverage distributors to expand or reconfigure existing facilities to best fit a distributor’s operational needs.
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