SubZero opens office in downtown Washougal

A company that provides design, engineering and construction services for food, beverage and pharmaceutical markets across the United States has recently expanded its operations to include a local office.

SubZero Constructors, Inc., has leased Suite 203, at 1887 Main St., in downtown Washougal.

Chris Bye, a professional engineer who lives in Washougal, manages the office.

He will provide engineered designs and drawings for industrial refrigeration projects.

“This means analyzing the refrigeration loads and selecting equipment, pipe sizes, valve sizes and design of the overall system,” he said. “I will also be involved in project management, making sure the projects are being built to spec and handling any issues that arise during the construction.”

Bye will work to develop business in the Pacific Northwest and help with energy analysis for refrigeration systems.

Dean Soll, president of SubZero Constructors, Inc., founded the company in 1997. The corporate headquarters is located in Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.

Other offices are in Saint Johns, Fla., and Honolulu, Hawaii.

The company, which has more than 100 employees, has two divisions — thermal construction and industrial refrigeration.

Its slogan is “Degrees Beyond Design.”

“We are degrees/temperature beyond the customer needs, and also degrees/levels beyond basic industry designs,” Bye said.

The website www.downtownwashougal.com attracted Soll’s attention when he was determining the site of the company’s next office.

Lone Wolf Investments worked with D. Studio 21 to create the website, which features a video with images of the area and interviews with local leaders and business owners, as well as information about companies that have located in downtown Washougal.

“It looked like a really cool place,” Soll said. “It fits our culture, and it’s the perfect square footage. It is a cool and up and coming downtown.”

The suite is 695 square feet.

Soll hopes to hire additional employees for the local office after there is continued growth in the Pacific Northwest.

SubZero Constructors is currently installing insulation for the 455,000 square foot Preferred Freezer Services building in Richland, Wash. When it opens this summer, the 116-foot tall structure will be the largest refrigerated warehouse in North America and the largest automated freezer in the world.

SubZero was also subcontracted to help create a man-made habitat for penguins at SeaWorld Orlando. The exhibit opened two years ago.

For more information, call 835-3545, email cbye@szero.com or visit www.szero.com.