COVID-19 has put a strain on existing testing swab manufacturing facilities prompting Puritan Medical Products to expand their existing capabilities. The decision was made to renovate and refresh an existing 144,000-square-foot manufacturing and warehouse facility at 129 North Main Street in Pittsfield, Maine. The existing property and structure had not been in operational use for a few years and needed significant architectural, mechanical, electrical and plumbing (MEP) upgrades to support the new state of the art equipment for their manufacturing process. In order to meet the immediate demand for swabs, an aggressive design build project delivery schedule was implemented by Puritan Medical and the building Owner/General Contractor Cianbro. This approach provided the project with a single point of responsibility, while allowing the designers and contractor to work together to complete the project within a few months from commencement.

Code Red Consultants worked closely with Ci Design in order to deliver a safe and efficient building. There were many unique challenges throughout the project due to the older character of the existing building, including mixed construction type and multiple additions that required reconciliation to result in a unified facility. After a quick transformation, the facility now serves as the modern manufacturing and warehouse space best suited to meet the company’s and country’s current needs.

Excitingly, Puritan Medical Products has partnered with the same project delivery team for a second facility. The scope of that project will be to further expand production of the testing swaps to support local and national demands.