Last year's 75th anniversary was not just the occasion for the Depuydt family to rename Fermette Food Group to UpFresh. With a new high-bay warehouse next to its headquarters along the A10 motorway in Ostend, the company's capacity will also double as of 2023.

UpFresh is not a food producer, but a fresh produce platform that stocks more than 5,000 fresh and ultra-fresh delicacies, of which more than 35 percent are own brands. With also logistics hubs in Sint-Katelijne-Waver and Barchon near Liège, every customer in Belgium, Zeeuws-Vlaanderen and northern France can be supplied within 24 hours.

To accommodate the company's further growth, UpFresh is building a warehouse in Ostend that is 75 meters deep (of which 52 meters are for storage and the rest for handling), 40 meters wide and 28 meters high, permanently cooled at 4°C. It is founded on piles, and 'inclusions' or ground columns were chosen for the floor slab on the ground floor due to the risk of settlement by underground peat layers. The lower part of the facade is covered with concrete sandwich panels, and from the first floor up, with steel sandwich panels. These are fixed to the floor levels to withstand wind loads, which can be significant in the coastal region. For the same reason, wind girders were installed in the roof. An interesting detail is that the client had sectional doors installed in the building's facade at various heights, so that large pieces can always be brought in or out at the different levels.

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