Hospital Achieves LEED Gold Certification for Cook-Chill Kitchen

Metropolitan state Hospital in Norwalk, CA, has received LEED Gold Certification for its central kitchen.

"The LEED Gold distinction is a reflection of the California Department of Mental Health, Metropolitan State Hospital and the Department of General Services' commitment to serving the needs of our hospital community while employing environmentally sustainable building practices," said Tamer Ahmed, project director of the Department of General Services. "To the best of our knowledge, this is the first cook-chill kitchen in the state of California to receive this distinction. We are thankful for Vanir's expertise in helping to make this happen."

Since the original hospital kitchen was built in 1950, it could no longer keep up with the hospital's demands and a new kitchen was deemed necessary. The new kitchen is 27,000 sq.ft. and houses the Department of Nutrition Services Administration staff, food preparation and food storage areas. Using a cook-chill method and automated equipment, the kitchen can produce up to 5,000 meals per day and food can be cooked in bulk, flash frozen and stored for up to 30 days. Equipment includes a 22-foot dishwasher, drive-thru refrigerato, and two ovens each capable of holding 48 full-sized commercial baking sheets.

To view a video of the new LEED certified kitchen at Metropolitan State Hospital, see below.