Voilà by IGA – Order Fulfillment Center

Location Pointe-Claire, QC
Area 310,000 sq. ft.
Status Completed, 2022

Enhancing IGA's e-commerce capabilities

To keep up with the rise of online grocery shopping and better serve its customers in Quebec, Empire, IGA's parent company, has invested $95 million in the construction of a 295,000 sq. ft. state-of-the-art automated distribution center in Pointe-Claire, in Montreal's West Island. The facility serves more than 100 municipalities and includes a 40-foot-high dry goods warehouse with refrigerated and freezer zones, office space, and a service yard that can accommodate semi-trailers and delivery vans.

Project team

Jerry Coviensky

OAQ, OAA, AAA, AIBC, LEED AP

Partner

Jerry Coviensky

A comprehensive vision for seamless execution

In its role as Prime Consultant and Project Architect, the team led by Jerry Coviensky, Senior Partner at GKC, drew on its distribution center experience to coordinate the execution of the various architectural and technical components of this major project. In particular, they devised an innovative solution that expedited the building’s commissioning.

©Eloa Defly

Complex coordination work

GKC oversaw the design of all support platforms and coordinated the deployment of electrical, mechanical, and fire protection solutions for integration with the automated system. “This was a very complex task, given the site’s particular requirements,” notes Coviensky. This included building and connecting a 6-megawatt private electrical substation, managing all connections for the two server rooms, and securing building code equivalency approvals for sprinklers and emergency exits.

Time and cost savings

In addition, GKC designed the ventilation layout for the refrigerated zone to facilitate the installation of the storage system. “We placed all the evaporators (heat exchangers) on the ceiling, which saved the client both considerable time and money,” explains Coviensky.

©Eloa Defly

Concrete: a unique and striking design element

For the main façade, the project team used distinctive precast concrete cladding, which was placed over the insulated metal panels of the envelope due to its high visibility from Highway 40: “This was a requirement of the City and also a way to add personality to the building,” says Coviensky. The office section on the side echoes this design, featuring an interplay of glass panels and vertically striped curtain walls arranged in an alternating pattern that creates visual interest and harmony. A large glass section at the front corner of the building, near the entrance, also provides a view of part of the distribution facilities, offering a glimpse into Voilà's direct-to-customer delivery process.

The inner surfaces of the exterior portico are clad in metal panels that echo Voilà’s signature blue branding. This bold color scheme continues inside, highlighting key areas such as the reception, kitchen, and common spaces.