The Essential Baking Company Plant Relocation project

Located in the industrial sector of south Seattle, MRJ teamed up with the Essential Baking Company and Lance Mueller & Associates to transform a 50-year-old, 45,400 SF existing warehouse into Essential Baking’s new production facility. Having been founded in Seattle, the Essential Baking Company expanded from baking organic bread in one building to producing bread, pastries and desserts in three different buildings spread out throughout the Seattle area. Looking to consolidate the three production facilities into one, MRJ worked closely with the owners and the design team early on to provide vital preconstruction services, providing budgetary advice and design concepts, selecting appropriate interior finishes, and coordinating equipment layouts to provide efficient configurations to meet their production needs and goals. Having to relocate over 150 pieces of heavy baking equipment, freezers and coolers from their three facilities, MRJ was highly involved in the ETL/UL listing process of the equipment to bring outdated machinery up to current codes, coordinating the installation of a 20’ x 80’ freezer, permitting and installing seismic racking/storage, sizing and designing the HVAC system, condensers, compressors and relocated roof top units to provide efficient venting for the warehouse and EBC’s equipment including sixteen large rack ovens.

Our scope of work also included demolition, tenant improvements, repairing and leveling existing slab-on-grade cracks to accommodate Essential’s rolling carts, cleaning and sealing the entire floor while under construction, transforming 1100 SF of existing office space into locker rooms, and expanding existing bathrooms to accommodate over 200 of their employees.