Sistema - Megawatts of Cooling Capacity
When Sistema needed megawatts of cooling capacity for their new manufacturing plant they called on Cooke Industries. The scale of Sistema’s new Mangere factory is impressive, with 200,000 square feet encompassing 140 manufacturing machines, as well as office and storage facilities. The largest factory in the southern hemisphere, this project took two years to complete. The end result is a world-class building that stands out not only for its scale but also for the design, which was recognised by the Property Council when they gave Sistema the Supreme Award in the prestigious New Zealand Rider Levett Bucknall Property Industry Awards in 2017.
140 manufacturing machines create a lot of heat. The Sistema site runs 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, so it is of vital importance that the plant is cooled to their exacting standards at all times. The machinery Cooke Industries supply provides state-of-the-art solutions that are robust and reliable. Cooke Industries has been part of the Sistema journey for almost a decade, supplying them with plant, equipment, and services to the highest specifications.
Andrew Cooke, Managing Director, said “originally we supplied Sistema with chiller equipment for their Penrose facility for cooling the injection moulding machines. We were then tasked with recommending the latest, most efficient and technologically advanced chiller products to cope with their increased production requirements at the new factory. To date we have supplied and commissioned six chillers with a combined capacity of over 2.4MW with a further 750kW chiller to be supplied within the next 12 months.
“We worked directly with Sistema and their engineers, who designed the factory, flow and fit out. We were able to ensure we thoroughly understood their requirements, and could fulfil their long list of specifications.”
While some of the equipment was transferred from the original Penrose site to the new facility, additional plant equipment was needed to meet the increased production requirements. The brief included adhering to Sistema’s stringent design conditions, which required machinery to not only meet but surpass modern day efficiency and acoustic requirements.
Andrew Cooke added “we totally understood Sistema’s vision for their high-tech facility. The equipment needed to tick many boxes, including looking aesthetically fitting, performing reliably, and meeting exacting acoustic and efficiency levels - plus the machines needed to be able to last the distance on Sistema’s 20 year plan. We researched the most technologically advanced systems available on the market today, and recommended a very good piece of kit that, although more expensive up front, will last the distance and is an excellent investment.”
