Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan
Location:
Detroit, MI
Scope:
Kitchen Design, Equipment Supply & Installation
We’re very excited about the Blue Cross Blue Shield employee cafeteria project we took on in partnership with Compass Group. BCBS wanted to rejuvenate their eatery by creating a space that employees would enjoy dining in and that was easy for kitchen staff to use. To do so, BCBS wanted to update and modernize some of their equipment and layout to make the space more efficient, effective and flexible.
- Modified the existing tops and body
- Provided new hot/cold drop-ins
- Installed modern sneeze guards
- Provided Hatco heat lamps over the food stations
- Built in new pass-through heat cabinets and refrigerators
- Installed a walk-in beverage cooler
- Added a hood to the Italian line
- Replaced some old, inefficient back-of-house equipment
- Added a blast chiller
But, in reality, the project was much more involved than that.
Instead of being a full-gut job, the plan was to work around or modify several existing structures. We worked closely with the general contractor, architect and BCBS to create custom solutions that would work within the existing infrastructure. But, with no as-built drawings to guide us and the added complications of an older high-rise building, we ran into several surprises along the way!
For example, we discovered that the curbs couldn’t be torn out because of all of the electrical buried underneath. The conduit ran to several other parts of the building, including the main server room. We couldn’t take the chance of accidentally cutting power and impacting the entire business. So, we created solutions for equipment power supply and drainage that worked within the existing electrical range, without tearing out any concrete. Additionally, we set up a ventless temp service in a converted meeting room to serve BCBS while the remodel was underway.
In all, this project was an amazing collaboration between the architect, general contractor, mechanicals teams, Compass Group, Blue Cross Blue Shield and us. According to Boelter project manager Chris L., “it was a great team effort between all of us involved, which is exactly what it takes to make a remodel project like this happen!”