Page 16 - Graypvine August 2021

PROJECT SPOTLIGHT

16 Process-Heavy Nestlé

Purina Projects Feature

Concurrent Execution

A bird's-eye view rendering of Project Green Acres in Batavia, Ohio.

Last year, Gray was awarded two manufacturing prioritizing maintaining a consistent schedule and
facility projects for Nestlé Purina, a global producer execution at both locations. The intense process
of dog and cat food. While this isn’t the first time nature of the projects is especially dependent
Gray has partnered with parent company Nestlé, it’s on Gray’s family of companies, with skill sets
the first time the company has worked specifically being pulled from both Gray Solutions and InLine
on a Nestlé Purina project. But, unlike any other Engineers.
Gray project, the Nestlé Purina projects are located Project Garden Keeper is on track to produce
in two states and are being designed and built the first kibble in April of 2022, and should wrap up
concurrently. Project Garden Keeper is a brownfield later that summer. In Ohio, Project Green Acres will
site in Eden, North Carolina; and Project Green produce kibble in the Fall of 2022, and is scheduled
Acres is a greenfield site located in Batavia, Ohio. to be complete in early 2023.
“We have separate teams in some respects, “The feeling is that the work will continue on
but we have a central process design team that indefinitely with deferred scope that will be added
feeds info to the group for support,” said Jeremy back later; meaning future projects and continued
Short, Director, Food and Beverage Market. “The processing/automation support from Gray
projects have different buildings, but essentially the Solutions,” said Jeremy.
same process. The North Carolina plant has three The following key team members are working
process systems, and Ohio has five.” hard to make these projects a success: Zach
Jeremy says that executing two projects with Becks, Dan Douglas, Devin Koenig, Tommy
the same process design simultaneously has Logsdon, Diaz McDaniel, Wes Perkins, Michael
generated unique learning experiences. The team, Perry Andy Placido, Greg Pomana, Mike Rahe, Jeff
which consists of around 175 team members, is Scott, Devon Snyder and John White.