Pet Food Manufacturer Provides Complete Supply Chain Solution for Industry Partners

Petsource by Scoular is an independent, wholly owned subsidiary that specializes in freeze-dried pet food processing. As a contract manufacturer for leading pet food brands, Petsource is ideally positioned to provide end-to-end supply chain solutions for its customers, from recipe development and ingredient procurement to packaging and shipping of ready-to-eat (RTE) goods.

For the design-build of the company’s greenfield facility in Seward, Nebraska, Petsource prioritized a fully integrated approach, incorporating process design services as well as architecture, engineering, equipment procurement & installation, and automation & controls. Petsource selected Gray to construct the facility because of its broad platform of services and experience within the pet food sector of the food and beverage industry, while Gray Solutions, a Gray company, provided technical consulting and process design support.

Forward-Thinking Design

Gray designed and constructed the pet food manufacturing facility to human-grade standards to ensure food safety and prevent cross-contamination of raw ingredients and finished goods. Through hygienic process design, all manufacturing elements and personnel in contact with raw and finished goods are kept separate from one another. Custom-designed wash racks, slicing table, and a UV sanitation tunnel prevent the spread of pathogens, while advanced automation & controls handle potentially hazardous processes that could otherwise pose a risk to workers.

Project Challenges

The emergence of a worldwide pandemic understandably impacted the coordination of teams and materials involved in  the project. Issues with receiving materials from overseas suppliers, communicating nuanced project details in a virtual setting, and ensuring the safety of all workers on site required flexible thinking and a solutions-based mindset among engineers, design experts, and construction crews.

This is where Gray’s deep history with pet food projects became a key factor. The experience the Gray team brought to the project enabled them to reach goals creatively and meet Petsource’s commissioning date. This close collaboration and problem solving not only helped Petsource begin operations on schedule, but it also helped Gray teams garner valuable experience working through a unique set of challenges that “Gray is applying to current and future projects,” according to Tyler Cundiff, president of the Food & Beverage Group at Gray, Inc.

Read more about how the Petsource facility’s unique design exceeds industry standards and promotes safe, efficient processes in Food Engineering’s Fab Plant feature.