Fire System Fabrication for Automotive Manufacturing Hub

Project overview

Customer:

Multinational automotive company

Location:

Central Texas

Challenge:

Pandemic-related delays and a major winter-weather event condensed the timeline for large-scale fire protection system sourcing, fabrication and installation into a tight three-month window so vehicle production could start on time.

Solution:

Our expert associates leveraged capabilities across our national footprint to fabricate several portions of the fire protection system simultaneously to meet the customer’s turnaround requirements.

Our advantages:

• More than 1,000 knowledgeable, experienced fire protection associates nationwide

• More than 35 strategically located fabrication facilities

• Comprehensive pipe fabrication services, including cutting, roll grooving, threading and welding

• Expansive inventory of fire protection products and system accessories

“Ferguson was the absolute best supplier on the Texas project. Our executives were even involved in supplier meetings, and Ferguson pulled through some miracles to ensure our project schedule dates are met. The Ferguson associates on the project were quick to respond and were always available. You can’t put a cost on the level of service that was given.” – Senior Construction Manager

Background

A major multinational automotive company sought to establish a new manufacturing hub in Texas to support growing production demand. The coronavirus pandemic had delayed breaking ground for the facility, and a record-setting winter weather event further impacted the construction schedule. With a production commencement deadline looming, the automaker still needed to equip the facility with the necessary fire protection systems.

Project scope

The new facility comprises more than 10 million square feet of floor space, making it one of the largest buildings in the world by volume. To meet the fire protection requirements for production to begin safely, our customer needed 50-60 discrete systems configured, fabricated and delivered in just three months.

The solution: Ferguson

The automaker turned to Ferguson because of our robust fabrication and distribution capabilities. For the first two weeks following the initial request, Ferguson associates in various roles across the country collaborated with the customer seven days a week to ensure all facets of the projects were being addressed.

With three fabrication facilities in Texas, we could have handled the project’s scope in-state during the allotted time, but doing so would have prevented us from servicing other local customers. However, our strategically placed distribution infrastructure enables cross-state delivery on expedited fabrication projects.

We leveraged 25 fabrication and loose shops across the southwestern U.S.—as far away as California—to source products and fabricate dozens of unique systems simultaneously.

As the project unfolded, we learned that the original fire system configurations provided to our shops were based on the facilities’ early construction designs—resulting in hundreds of thousands of obstructions. Our associates took an agile approach to reconfiguration and tapped into our distribution network to source additional material to keep the project moving forward on time.

We partnered with Trinity Logistics to reduce the lead times on delivery. Individual associates also contributed invaluably to our efforts. In one case, an associate hand-delivered material to the jobsite from our San Antonio shop approximately 100 miles away.

Our associates’ commitment to providing collaborative solutions to complex, ever-changing challenges helped the customer meet the strict production start date. Since fulfilling the initial requirement, our team has provided more than 250 additional systems to protect our customer’s substantial manufacturing investment.

With a planned expansion of 1.4 million more square feet and talk of an additional production facility on the 2,500-acre property, the customer has selected Ferguson as their exclusive supplier for all fire protection projects nationwide going forward.

“Ferguson was the absolute best supplier on the Texas project,” said a senior construction manager. “Our executives were even involved in supplier meetings, and Ferguson pulled through some miracles to ensure our project schedule dates are met. The Ferguson associates on the project were quick to respond and were always available. You can’t put a cost on the level of service that was given.”

Learn how Ferguson can help you achieve success on your complex projects at ferguson.com/fire.