BICP Taiku Solution for Zhongtong Smart Manufacturing Cold Chain Project

Traditional cold storage facilities often have small column grids, leading to dense columns that hinder rack layout and future automation upgrades. Expansion joints, beam depth, and insulation area significantly impact construction cost and operational energy consumption. A holistic approach is needed during the design phase to balance structural, insulation, racking, and operational efficiency requirements.

Adopted BICP's 'Taiku' system, featuring a post-tensioned slab-column seismic wall structure with a flat slab (post-tensioned flat plate). The column grid was enlarged to 11.2 m × 12.6 m. Expansion joints were optimized into expansion reinforcement strips, reducing slab thickness and insulation area, and increasing effective storage capacity by over 15%.

Project Overview

Zhongtong Smart Manufacturing Project is located on the north side of Changfuhang Road, Xiaoshan Economic Development Zone (Qiantang District), Hangzhou, on flat terrain. The site covers approximately 122,979.45 m². Building 1A/1B cold storage workshop has a floor area of 44,345.73 m² (2 stories, height 22.2 m); Building 2A/2B cold storage workshop has a floor area of 41,400.4 m² (3 stories, height 22.2 m).

Project Features

• Building 2A/2B: Plan dimensions 86.0 m × 56.0 m, structural system: post-tensioned slab-column seismic wall, 3 stories, column grid 11.2 m × 12.6 m.
• Building 1A/1B: Plan dimensions 86.0 m × 67.1 m, structural system: post-tensioned slab-column seismic wall, 2 stories, column grid 11.2 m × 12.6 m.

Taiku Solution

1. The cold storage rooms adopt a reinforced concrete slab-column seismic wall structure with post-tensioned flat slabs.
2. Post-tensioning technology effectively increases expansion joint spacing, reduces crack width and structural deflection.
3. The flat slab provides a smooth soffit with minimal surface area, facilitating polyurethane insulation spray application, reducing insulation work quantity, and lowering overall cost compared to conventional beam-slab structures. It also improves airflow distribution inside the storage, enhances refrigeration system efficiency, and increases effective storage capacity by over 15%, significantly boosting operational economic benefits.

Project Optimization

Replaced Y-direction post-cast strips with expansion reinforcement strips, shortening construction duration, improving formwork turnover rate, and reducing construction cost and complexity.

On-site Post-Tensioning Construction

(Images of post-tensioned flat slab construction for cold storage are omitted.)

Applicability

'Taiku' is suitable for cold chain warehouses requiring large column grids and post-tensioned flat slab systems. Specific column grids, loads, expansion joint optimization, and story height control should be verified based on project conditions.

Effective storage capacity increased by over 15%; construction cost reduced by 10%-20% compared to conventional beam-slab structures; operational energy consumption lowered; construction period shortened.