Délifrance has commissioned Elcimaï to build its production facility in Romans-sur-Isère
To support its growth, Délifrance, one of Europe’s leading manufacturers of bakery and pastry products, sought to expand the storage capacity of its production facility in Romans-sur-Isère (26). The company entrusted the Elcimaï Group with the design and supervision of the construction work.
Délifrance develops frozen bakery, pastry, and deli products for the foodservice industry, artisan bakers, and mass retailers in approximately 100 countries worldwide. Since 2016, the company has undertaken a major transformation of its production site in Romans-sur-Isère (26) with the creation of new production lines. To increase its storage capacity by 5,400 square meters, Délifrance chose to partner with the Elcimaï Group. It entrusted the group with the design and management of the construction work under a project management contract. The site can now accommodate nearly 12,000 pallets of frozen products, increasing its storage capacity sixfold and thereby meeting the rapid growth in the site’s production volumes.
The complementary expertise of the Elcimaï Group’s Real Estate division was a major asset in successfully completing this project. Project management, architects, civil engineers, engineers specializing in technical installations, BIM designers… the entire team was mobilized.
During the design phase, the Elcimaï teams proposed a construction method that complied with regulatory requirements and met the project’s needs. For example, the use and integration of various innovative techniques to simultaneously meet ICPE fire safety regulations and thermal insulation requirements aimed at maintaining sub-zero temperatures in storage areas (various principles studied and specified to eliminate thermal bridges). Complex underground civil engineering works, known as “transparent” structures, were also proposed to address urban planning and flood management constraints. Access to the premises, equipment, and technical systems was simplified to ensure efficient operation and maintenance. Similarly, the layout of the various zones was designed to facilitate functional workflows.
“Driven by the ambitious sustainable development initiative of the VIVESCIA grain cooperative group, to which the company belongs, Délifrance has structured and launched its own corporate social responsibility initiative, Baking Good BETTER,” explains Robert O’Boyle, CEO of Délifrance. “The expansion of the distribution center was therefore designed to generate energy savings by optimizing logistics to avoid unnecessary trips, on the one hand, and by selecting industrial equipment that optimizes the thermal management of refrigeration systems, on the other.”
Elcimaï paid particular attention to environmental considerations by complying with current regulations and implementing common-sense principles (enhanced thermal and acoustic insulation, high-performance solar control glazing, sunshades, on-site infiltration of all rainwater, heat recovery system, etc.).
The project was modeled in 3D during the design, synthesis, and implementation phases and managed via an electronic platform for document sharing and approvals. Upon completion of the work, Elcimaï implemented internally developed software for project acceptance and tracking the resolution of outstanding issues.
“The success of this project is primarily due to the relationship of trust established with the client, Délifrance,” explains Sébastien Marcellier, project director at Elcimaï Ingénierie. “We aligned our respective areas of expertise with a shared vision and common objectives, grounded in open communication and information flow, a rigorous methodology, a forward-looking approach, appropriate construction methods, and, finally, safety, quality, and adherence to deadlines. In this context, Elcimaï was able to fully demonstrate its expertise in the agri-food sector and fully satisfy the client.”
The Elcimaï Group would like to thank the project owner Délifrance, SOCOTEC (CTC/SPS inspections), and all the construction companies that participated in the project : CHEVAL-TP, SMG26, SOREDAL, KP1, CMD, SMAC/ABC, SODIMETAL, PI INSTALL, THEROND, SPIE Industrie, CICO-SUD, EQUANS, JCI, AUTOMATEC, STOW-GROUP, and SCHINDLER.