A growing business and staff required the construction of a new corporate headquarters and manufacturing facility for Feldmeier Equipment in Syracuse, NY. The new $15 million facility combines a pre-engineered Varco Pruden metal building with a façade of several materials, including Metl-Span insulated metal panels.

Feldmeier Equipment stayed open during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic as an essential business in the supply chain supporting the pharmaceutical, food, beverage and dairy industries. Visitors know immediately where they are when they arrive at the new building. The entrance to the office area is an abstract representation of the company logo, the shape of the letter F.

“The main part of the manufacturing area is clad with insulated metal panels in a variety of colors,” says Tom Malinowski, AIA, LEED AP, Senior Project Architect at VIP Architectural Associates of Syracuse. “The office portion of the building is clad in ACM, glass, concrete veneer and IMPs. The IMPs offered us a variety of colors as well as the capability to match Feldmeier colors. We were also able to achieve the desired R-value for the facility, saving the owners on heating and cooling costs.”

The building won an award from Varco Pruden as well as being named the Town of Dewitt Planning Board “Project of the Year.”

More than 56,600 square feet of insulated metal panels from Metl-Span were installed on the Feldmeier Equipment building. Almost 36,000 square feet were the CF 36 Striated panels in Polar White, with another 9,600 square feet in Slate Gray. Metl-Span’s CF 7.2 Insul-Rib panels were installed as accent panels, in Tundra and some in Regal Blue. About 2,600 square feet of the CF 42 Striated panels in Tundra were also installed. The panels were all 2.5 inches thick with interior panels in Igloo White.

The bright blue ACM cladding at the entrance of the building matches the Feldmeier blue and creates a stylized “F” that stands out when approaching the building. The stainless-steel column supporting the entry canopy was manufactured by Feldmeier employees.

“The thruway-facing manufacturing building’s façade is modernized and creates a high-tech feel through the use of different materials, colors, profiles, orientations and vertical plane changes,” Malinowski says. “The vertical plane changes and recessed areas were made possible utilizing vertical and horizontal framing and secondary framing to create visible depth and interest.”

Malinowski says the final façade design represents the linear nature of Feldmeier’s manufacturing process.

The VIP Structures crew completed the project in 14 months, working through a harsh New York winter. Installing the IMPs took about six months.