Getting set to serve the world, the Casino based livestock processing company, Northern Co-operative Meat Company (NCMC) is gearing for long-term growth. The upgrade and expansion investment will enable its many operators meet increased national and international demand for premium Australian meat. Brisbane based international food facilities designer, Wiley has been trusted to deliver on the 4 stage project set to run over 2016.
The projects consist of design and construction of a new state-of-the-art cold chain management facility, design and construction of a beef knocking box and race system, design, supply and install of a steam repair and relocation, and finally the Tannery wastewater treatment plant upgrade.
NCMC Chief Executive Officer Simon Stahl said: “We have more than 100 operators who use our facilities in Casino to process their livestock. Our main focus is to provide them with efficient facilities using a highly trained workforce and specialised equipment to service all major global markets including Australia, the USA, China, Japan, Korea, European Union, Halal and organic markets.
“We chose Wiley to undertake the design and construction of our latest projects because we are confident in their specialist knowledge of the demanding standards of food safety and hygiene, especially in meat and across the cold chain production line.
“The knocking box and race system are a pivotal part of our abattoir and will set the rhythm for the rest of the facility. Wiley have experience in designing to international standards of animal welfare and this design complied with design principles created by US animal welfare expert Dr Temple Grandin.
“We look forward to our continued work with Wiley which began earlier this year.”
Wiley Managing Director Tom Wiley said: “NCMC has been around for nearly as long as we have and are well known as an industry leader in red meat processing.
“Our team has worked closely with NCMC over the last few years to understand the requirements of each project and their desire to continue providing quality services and products to its customers servicing Australia and the world. They have strong values which align with ours which further strengthens our long-standing relationship with them.
Wiley Senior Project Manager Barry Murphy said: “Our multidisciplinary team has drawn upon nearly a century of food industry experience to design and deliver highly innovative and best practice solutions in line with NCMC’s budget and timeframes. For their new cold chain management facility, NCMC wanted to freeze and chill all beef and veal cartons onsite, reduce the transportation of products offsite, and improve staff and product flows throughout the facility.
“The design we came up with improves carton management, increases storage capacity on site, and improves load-out capabilities, ultimately reducing manual handling, forklift movements, and creating a safer environment for all workers.
“We’ll also be installing an ASRS automated sortation and retrieval system, which is the first of its kind used in a frozen environment in Australia and only the second in the world. This system provides NCMC with the ability to better manage product flow and traceability.
“We’re pleased that the building footprint and the equipment we have selected will allow NCMC to expand and modify their operations in the future.
“Meanwhile, our works on the Tannery infrastructure will improve the segregation of the water waste streams.
“We look forward to working with NCMC on all four projects, taking approximately one year to complete.”
