Based in Leicester, Saladworks was originally designed to produce salads and sandwiches but, since 2005, has evolved into manufacturing high quality ready meals for major UK retailers.

It produces meals for a variety of categories but are mainly focused on Italian, Health and Premium ranges.

To accommodate changes in production processes, Samworth Brothers appointed Lindum as Principal Contractor to change the use and layout of some
factory areas. As all works were undertaken in a live food environment, Site works were split into 12 phases to minimise disruption.

We removed sections of the internal walls and floors and replaced with new walls, floors, drains and services, to form the following:
• Blast chills
• Chilled low risk assembly
• Sanitiser Room
• Holding Chill
• Green Preparation
• High Risk Red Chill
We also provided a small extension to the laundry store and refurbished the staff locker room. With our early involvement in the scheme we were able to carry out drain surveys, wall surveys, flooring samples which meant we could ensure the exact client’s design criteria were met.

We had engagement in all aspects of the design which ensured maximum programme / monetary value was provided.
Our site team engaged everyday with the Samworth’s operational and engineering teams so all were aware of what key activities were happening on a daily basis.
Weekly team meetings also provided opportunity to review progress – trackers on information required specifications and costs were reviewed and discussed. This allowed early and critical decisions to be made by the client and consultant team.

To maintain strict hygiene standards in the factory we put in place several processes including:
• Lindum’s bespoke white wall protection system
• Materials in and rubbish out – this was done using enclosed trollies which were sanitised before entry into factory and again on return out.
• Dedicated changing area – We used the existing employee changing facilities to form internal changing rooms for site operatives to change back into their work gear then vise versa on return out of the factory.

To minimise health and safety risks, large material distribution was carried out at quieter times such as Saturday evenings and shift change times. We also undertook the condenser install at a weekend during a quieter period as the condenser had to be lifted over the live factory.
Working with the client, we adapted our site safety induction to incorporate the specific Samworth site hygienic regime, ensuring our operatives were aware of both construction and factory risks and protocols. We also incorporated Samworth’s permit system into ours for consistency.

We also took responsibility for the ceiling void as a CDM area – we were responsible for the liaison with site engineers carrying out their standard maintenance procedures within our construction areas.

Furthermore, we provided running final accounts enabling clear, precise budget control. Also, programmes were updated weekly which provided
visibility to the client so production quotas could be maintained. Any drawing changes and design information were reviewed and actioned quickly.
‘Teamworks’ was at the core of the project – good communication and tight integration between the client, site team and the wider Lindum team lead to a successful outcome, in a 24 hour live working factory.