Chick-fil-A, a beloved and widely popular restaurant chain across the United States, entrusted our team with mechanical and plumbing design services for several of their locations. Our contributions encompassed a wide range of tasks, including heating and cooling load calculations, natural gas line sizing (BTU loads), and grease abatement system design. These fast-paced projects required efficient design completion within approximately two weeks, followed by over two months of construction.

Natural Gas Heaters

• Challenge: The contractor wanted to add several natural gas heaters to the drive-thru canopy areas after the main gas line was ran to the canopy location.
• Response: Our team of mechanical engineers ran through natural gas calculations and determined the line sizing was close to being maxed out.
• Outcome: The issue was resolved in 1 business day, allowing the project to stay on track.
• Key Takeaway: Effective communication between the contractor and engineers, paired with quick calculation checks, mitigated the impact of adding equipment that could not be supported.

Plumbing/Electrical Clash

• Challenge: The design documents indicated that both the plumbing pressure reducing assy. and electrical panel occupy the same recessed area within the restaurant.
• Response: Our plumbing engineers reviewed the area and were able to relocate the pressure reducing assy. To a more manageable location.
• Outcome: The issue was resolved in 2 business days, allowing the project to stay on track. Drawing revisions were necessary to track changes.
• Key Takeaway: Effective communication between the contractor and engineers, paired with quick drawing revision, mitigated the impact of any future concerns.

General Observations:

• Both challenges underscore the importance of communication and rapid response mechanisms in construction projects.
• The durations (1 and 2 business days) reflect a streamlined process, likely supported by strong collaboration among contractors, engineers, and other stakeholders.
• Common strategies included reviewing engineer developed calculations, flexibility in utility locations, and ensuring solutions were compliant.