There has been years of research and development that has preceded our company entering this space of temperature-controlled warehousing.
1994
Four years after Ken Jenson founded Jenson Refrigeration, the company expanded into the cold storage industry by opening a 5,000 square foot facility in Salt Lake City dedicated to storing brine shrimp. This facility was operational for 12 years, learning much about the operations of a storage facility, what works well and also what does not work so well.
2003
Built and operated an in-house refrigeration system that simulated a winter and spring climate for local floral companies. Operated this until 2015, learning how to build refrigeration systems that could change and hold different temperatures, as well as maintain and control humidity.
2017
At our Draper headquarters, we engineered and constructed a 112,000 cubic foot storage freezer that features redundancy for enhanced reliability and optimized for low operating costs. We developed systems and procedures to maintain required temperatures and handle various products, all while maximizing the usable cubic footage.
2018
Through various relationships, Jenson discovered that many cold products in Utah were being transferred to neighboring states for temperature-controlled storage. We understood the need to open a much larger complimentary facility, prompting us to search for viable locations with substantial future expansion.
2019
We initiated discussions with Nephi City to headquarter our new cold storage facility. The necessary infrastructure was beyond what many rural cities could accommodate at the time. While such a facility could be more easily built in a metropolitan area, our strong ties to Nephi and our desire to support and strengthen a town we love kept drawing us in that direction.
2020
We purchased land from Nephi City for the future home of Jenson Cold Storage and began collaborating with the city to develop the necessary infrastructure for a facility of this magnitude. To bring this vision to life, we partnered with AE Urbia Architecture Firm, Boyd Martin Construction, and later Cache Valley Bank.
2021
Embarking on the bidding process during an unprecedented period marked by supply chain issues, extreme increases in construction costs, and rising interest rates. The cost of the facility nearly doubled overnight. Securing quotes and timelines on materials proved challenging, as suppliers were reluctant to commit to fixed prices. As a result, we had to purchase the steel for Phase 1 before the land preparation had even begun.
2022
We broke ground with steel already on-site and excavators busily moving dirt in the background, despite ongoing supply chain issues. With an anticipated opening date of October 2023, we were progressing swiftly. However, an extreme winter caused large excavators to get stuck, forcing us to shut down the project for several months.
2023
The electrical switch gear we had preordered was not going to be available by the opening date. With no temporary power available, all construction power had to be supplied by generators. We decided to install our own temporary power to support ongoing and future construction phases. We completed all the infrastructure and site work for the next three phases. Numerous engineering changes were implemented to maximize building performance. Despite major delays in the refrigeration racks, we continued building the structure, planning to find a way to slide them into place afterward—a significant challenge.
Early 2024
We invested significant time and budget to ensure future maintenance and repairs would be convenient and safe. Instead of a vertical ladder, we installed stairs. We raised fire system piping and other utilities up to the ceiling rail to conceal, protect, and achieve a streamlined aesthetic. Although we wanted a software program capable of logging history and data in real-time, we faced a six-month wait for a custom-built system.
April 2024
Customers began knocking at the door, eager to occupy the space. We were striving to push through the final phases of construction and install the cornerstone of the facility—the refrigeration system.
May 2024
The refrigeration systems finally arrived! Each of the four rack systems weighing 3.5 tons. Since the roof had been in place for months, we had to lift each rack vertically 20 feet and slide them horizontally another 20 feet—a rigging and hoisting marvel. Once set, they were hooked up and operational within four weeks.
June 2024
The refrigeration systems are now online and operational! After working out the kinks, we monitored the system as it brought the entire 2.3 million cubic feet from 70 degrees down to -10 degrees.
July 2024
On July 11th, we accepted product from our first customer! Since then, three forklifts have been operating six days a week to receive product, averaging 120 pallets a day until we reach our maximum capacity of 8,800 pallets for this first phase.
