Distribution Center MEP Upgrades – Confidential Client

A confidential big box retailer’s distribution center in Buckeye, Arizona, faced a critical operational challenge: maintaining consistent temperatures across a 1.7 million-square-foot logistics facility in one of the country’s harshest climates. With nearly 350 dock doors in constant use, temperature-sensitive products at risk, and the retailer operating in a rapid growth mode, the facility needed an HVAC solution that could support high-volume distribution demands while remaining cost effective and operationally resilient.

The retailer sought a faster, more efficient delivery model to execute large-scale infrastructure upgrades while maintaining budget. Henderson Companies delivered a turnkey, engineer-led design-build solution, serving as prime and coordinating all internal and external stakeholders. Henderson Engineers provided full building systems design, while Henderson Building Solutions led commissioning and general contracting services.

The project centered on replacing an underperforming HVAC system that struggled to maintain consistent temperatures in extreme desert conditions. Henderson implemented a combination of energy-efficient heat pump rooftop units and air replacement units totaling nearly 2,600 tons of capacity. To improve efficiency and reduce costs, the team strategically reused much of the existing electrical service and distribution infrastructure while coordinating three new utility services to support facility-wide improvements. HVAC capacities were carefully optimized using heat pump technology, while upgraded natural gas heating systems aligned with the retailer’s operational requirements.

To improve environmental control within the high-bay warehouse environment, we introduced an innovative airflow strategy that pulled cooler air directly into the racking system, helping stabilize temperatures in critical storage areas. The approach improved conditions for temperature-sensitive inventory and enhanced long-term operational performance in a distribution center with constant loading activity and high logistical demands.

By combining engineering and construction management under one team, we delivered real-time problem solving, reduced RFIs, and created efficiencies that reinvested savings back into the facility.

The result is a future-ready distribution center that maintains reliable temperature control, supports continuous logistics operations, and positions the retailer for continued growth while delivering the project under budget.