About
Sherwood State School is a government primary school located in Sherwood, in Brisbane's inner west. As part of a capital works upgrade to the school's kitchen and food preparation facilities, Chill Merchants was engaged by builder Stevenson Builders to deliver a commercial refrigeration and mechanical services scope, including a new walk-in cold room system and kitchen exhaust works.
Project Details
The Challenge
Upgrading kitchen and food storage infrastructure at a functioning state school requires technical precision across both refrigeration and mechanical disciplines, delivered within the constraints of a live school environment. The scope at Sherwood State School presented several specific requirements:
- Designing and installing a new walk-in fridge and freezer cold room system suited to a commercial school kitchen setting, meeting food safety and compliance standards.
- Installing a commercial kitchen range hood exhaust system to the standard required for a government education facility.
- Completing associated mechanical upgrades in coordination with the cold room and exhaust scope, ensuring all systems were integrated correctly within the kitchen environment.
- Delivering works within a live school campus setting, requiring adherence to site access protocols and careful scheduling to minimise disruption to school operations.
Our Approach
Chill Merchants delivered the full refrigeration and mechanical services scope at Sherwood State School, coordinating with Stevenson Builders to ensure each system was installed correctly and in line with the requirements of a government school facility.
Walk-In Cold Room System: Chill Merchants supplied and installed a new walk-in fridge and freezer cold room system, engineered for commercial kitchen use in a school environment. The system was selected and installed to meet the food safety and operational requirements of the facility.
Kitchen Range Hood Exhaust: A commercial kitchen range hood exhaust system was designed and installed to the standard required for a government education facility, providing compliant extraction for the upgraded kitchen.
Associated Mechanical Upgrades: All associated mechanical upgrades were completed in coordination with the cold room and exhaust installation, ensuring the systems were fully integrated and the kitchen environment was functional and compliant on completion.
Live Campus Delivery: Works were planned and sequenced in coordination with Stevenson Builders to meet site access requirements on the active school campus, with scheduling aligned to minimise impact on the school's daily operations.
The Outcome
Sherwood State School now has a modern, compliant kitchen and food storage facility equipped with a purpose-installed cold room system and commercial exhaust, built to the standard required of a government school and fit for long-term operational use.
The project was delivered on time in coordination with Stevenson Builders' construction programme, adding to Chill Merchants' track record of mechanical and refrigeration works in the education sector, where the company is actively building its capability and reputation as a preferred contractor for state and private school capital works.
Why Chill Merchant
The Sherwood State School project reflects Chill Merchants' ability to deliver across both refrigeration and mechanical disciplines within the specific demands of a school capital works environment.
Refrigeration and HVAC under one contractor: Chill Merchants self-performs across commercial refrigeration and mechanical services, giving builders a single contractor for cold room, exhaust, and associated mechanical scope, with no handover between trades.
Education sector capability: Chill Merchants is establishing itself as a preferred mechanical contractor across the education sector, with experience spanning state schools and private colleges. The compliance expectations, site access requirements, and builder relationships in this sector are well understood.
Government facility standards: Works at government schools carry documentation and compliance expectations that not every contractor is equipped to meet. Chill Merchants builds this into the delivery from day one.
Trusted by commercial builders: Engagement by builders like Stevenson Builders reflects the consistent quality and reliability that Chill Merchants brings to education and institutional projects across South East Queensland.
