Swire Coca-Cola needed more storage space and came up with the idea of renovating an aging facility on its grounds in Denver, CO. The trick was converting this old building, with abandoned rail access and no efficient loading dock access, into a functionally efficient, modern-looking facility at a reasonable cost. Insulated metal panels (IMPs) from Metl-Span, installed as roofing and a composite wall system, helped complete the successful project.

“The owner of Swire Coca-Cola wanted to operate in an existing steel structure that was constructed on their current site in the early 1940s,” explained Bryant Mazzetti, AIA, of Powers Brown Architecture in Denver. “The original building was used as a steel manufacturing plant and had been under-utilized for a few decades before our renovation. The new facility would house Dasani Water storage for Coca-Cola, but the original building was in serious disrepair.”

Big-D Construction of Ogden, Utah, was the design-builder for Swire Coca-Cola. The 31,000 square feet of roofing is Metl-Span’s CFR 42 panels with a three-inch urethane core. The exterior 24-gauge panels are Galvalume and the interior 26-gauge panels are finished Igloo White. The 24,000 square feet of wall panels are Mesa CF 42 panels with a three-inch Urethane core. The 26-gauge exterior panels have an Almond paint finish while the 26-gauge interior panels are Igloo White.

“The toughest challenge was stripping the existing facility down to the frame of the old building, which wasn’t necessarily as plumb as we had hoped for,” says Forrest McNabb, CPE, president of Big-D Construction. “The IMP subcontractor, Big Johnson, working with our partner Landmark Builders, the general contractor, did an amazing job; provided a clean, safe and beautiful finished product.

“Everyone was extremely pleased as it took an old worn-down, leaky, cold and dark building and changed it into a brilliant white, warm and bright building. The before and after pictures are truly a picture of what an incredible makeover took place.”

Mazzetti says the use of IMPs helped reduce cost, as opposed to other roofing and wall products, and delivered less labor cost.

“IMPs were selected to give the building the best overall thermal and aesthetic performance without requiring major modifications to the 1940s structure,” Mazzetti says. "The IMP also gave the interior of the building a nice, durable finish. Thermal value of the panels with the durable interior and exterior surfaces allowed us to minimize the wall assembly thickness and reduce the trades that would need to be coordinated on site. The textured exterior helped the City of Denver get comfortable with the massive look of the building from the right of way.”