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Amazon DC completes Redditch Gateway phase one

Posted on by Keith McKinley

Leading commercial property developer Stoford has completed work on the first phase of a £200m build-to-suit logistics and manufacturing scheme near Redditch, UK.

Unit A is a new 534,000 sq ft (50,400 sq m) warehouse building with a mezzanine floor and integral office space that lies to the north of the 78-acre Redditch Gateway site, near Junction 3 of the M42.

The development, which has been pre-let to multinational technology company Amazon, was funded by Royal London Asset Management (RLAM) and has an end value of c.£86m.

Redditch Gateway has capacity for up to one million sq ft (92,900 sq m) of brand new office, logistics and manufacturing accommodation when complete.

Two additional build-to-suit units of between 150,000–250,000 sq ft (14,000-23,000 sqm) are available to the south of the site, which is now fully serviced and delivers a 9.5MVA power supply. The accommodation will include integral office space, a secure yard and parking, with a total space of c.450,000 sq ft (c.41,800 sq m).

Dan Gallagher, Joint Managing Director, Stoford said: “With the first unit at Redditch Gateway now complete, we are working to deliver the next phase in this exciting scheme. Redditch Gateway is located in a prominent distribution area of the Midlands, with a skilled local labour force and excellent transport links via the national motorway network. There is huge pent up demand for logistics and manufacturing accommodation of this size and quality in the West Midlands and we are anticipating significant interest in the next phase.”

Gary Woodman, Chief Executive of Worcestershire Local Enterprise Partnership (WLEP), said: “I am pleased to see the first phase of work completed at the Redditch Gateway site. Increasing jobs in the county is a key objective for Worcestershire and this investment from Amazon will help to bring jobs and economic benefits to the county, helping the county to bounce back from the shock of the COVID pandemic. As part of our Plan for Growth strategy for 2040, I look forward to seeing the delivery of further phases of this project to help us achieve our vision of making Worcestershire a connected, creative, dynamic economy for all.”

Anita Bhalla, Interim Chair, Greater Birmingham and Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership (GBSLEP), said: “It is fantastic to see Redditch Gateway reach this latest milestone, as it demonstrates how our investments are delivering for our local people and businesses. We allocated £1.8m from our £208m Local Growth Fund programme to this project. It’s great to see that Amazon has already signed up to move in and we can expect further tenants in the next phase. In the last decade, GBSLEP’s unique structure of bringing together public, private and academic partners has helped unlock many commercial sites like this one, helping drive inclusive economic growth across our region.”

Worcestershire County Council Cabinet Member with Responsibility for Economy and Skills, Councillor Marc Bayliss, said: ”It is great news for the county as construction is progressing well at the Redditch Gateway site and a world renowned name such as Amazon has been named as tenants and will have a base in our county. It’s another clear and visual indication of the progress we have made over recent years, as we continue to develop the county’s economy and bring with that substantial economic benefits.”

Councillor Matt Dormer, Leader of Redditch Borough Council, said: “Exciting times are underway for Redditch and with the completion of the first phase of the Gateway development this proves that this Council is committed to unlocking the potential of this Borough and we are delivering on our promises. And we’re not resting on our laurels and will continue to work with partners to push through the second phase of the development which, along with the Town Deal, will complement our plans to regenerate Redditch. I am proud of this town and can’t wait to see it flourish, creating jobs for our residents and boosting the local economy.”

Councillor Tony Jefferson, Leader of Stratford-on-Avon District Council, said: “This scheme will be a real tonic to the economic development of the area and will create a great many employment opportunities. The arrival of an organisation like Amazon is a real plus.”

Tim Davies, Senior Development Manager, Homes England, said: “This is exciting news for the project which has been the result of many years of brokerage behind the scenes. Homes England look forward to receiving proposals from Stoford for the remaining land.”

Redditch Gateway is located off Gorcott Hill and the A4023 Coventry Highway on the eastern fringes of Redditch, just 18 miles (29km) from Birmingham Airport. The site falls into two local authority areas, Stratford-on-Avon in Warwickshire to the north and Bromsgrove district to the south.

Stoford has been appointed as development partner for Redditch Gateway, working alongside the two landowners, The Gorcott Trust and Homes England. The scheme is being supported through a blend of grant and loan funding of £1.7m from WLEP and a £1.8m grant from GBSLEP.

Redditch Gateway is being marketed by Burbage Realty, Colliers International and Savills.

 

Not so hard to handle

Posted on by Keith McKinley

No matter how difficult a product is to store and pick, improvement can always be found, says Edward Hutchison, Managing Director of BITO Storage Systems.

Some items are more difficult to pick than others. Often these items are stored the way they always have been. But that is never an excuse not to investigate how storage efficiency and picking productivity can be improved. Many operations that have straightforward pallets and cases also deal in irregular shapes and outsizes that present their own challenges. Some operations deal only in items that are difficult to store and, more particularly, difficult to pick.

Picking individual or multiple sheet material from racking is a good example. One recent application involved installing a roller-tracked location solution that combines standard BITO components and specially designed parts in a ‘letter-box’ style rack (pictured), where sheets can be picked either individually or in a collection. The racking allows multiple sheets to sit in a location that has sufficient clearance to allow air to be blown in via a hose to raise a delicate, thin single sheet to allow it to be picked individually.

Garment and apparel is a fast growing ecommerce sector requiring a mix of solutions, from hanging garment conveyors to shoe box storage and shelving for folded garments. The latter, while not presenting an obviously awkward storage challenge, can often create a problem where polythene covered individual garments easily slip out of a shelf. BITO created an essentially simple solution to this issue with modules of shelving designed to fit neatly between two uprights on the ground level of a racking structure. The shelves have a divider with a vertical return at the pick face to create a retained location that can hold a pile of individual, polythene wrapped garments securely, preventing them from sliding around during picking, while providing a gap that is wide enough to make an easy pick.

Providing locations for large and outside pallets and goods, which many facilities block stack on floors, is another route to improved storage and picking. Handling can be made easier by adding a bottom rail in the rack to lift the larger pallets off the floor and creating a rack location with a higher first beam level will make it easy to store and pick bulky, outsized items.

Sometimes odd shaped items are stored in stillages that, being heavy themselves, are often block stacked on floors. Placing stillages in a racking system however gives better utilisation of the total space and also allows use of the full height of the warehouse. A system comprising racking designed with a rail on each side of the uprights, running from front to back, will allow lift truck drivers to place a stillage in a fashion similar to a single-deep drive-in rack. This is a far more space efficient solution than using beams to rest stillages on, as is done in a traditional pallet-style rack.

More and more unusually sized items are being moved from the warehouse floor into racking, where they are better protected and can be more easily located, picked and handled. Even 6-tonne gas turbine engines can be racked, as demonstrated by an award-winning project that included an impressive three-level high gas turbine engine rack, providing 72 locations, served by a wire-guided side loader. This was created from a bespoke BITO design, using standard beams and uprights, enables engines weighing up to 6-tonnes, and stored on 1-tonne pallets to be located on the first beam level as well as ground level. The top-level locations can hold up to 4-tonnes. In this instance, the client had never previously racked engines, and it was also the heaviest pallet that BITO has ever stored.

If you think your product is too difficult to store in a better way, think again. With the right expertise, experience, and access to a broad range of storage systems and state of the art techniques, there will always be a way to improve your operation.

STILL supports local children’s groups

Posted on by Keith McKinley

This year once again, the Hamburg-based company STILL is taking on social responsibility in the city and supporting the equal participation of Hamburg’s children and young people in education, culture and social interaction.

The company has donated €5,000 each to the local projects Mittagskinder Foundation (pictured), Kultur Palast Hamburg Foundation and the Wilhelmsburg Production School, and has also given around 1,500 chocolate Advent calendars to the three institutions as well as the Hamburger Tafel and the Arche in Hamburg-Billstedt.

Equal opportunities, rights, integration, education and a warm meal at least once a day – unfortunately, for many children and young people in Hamburg this is not a matter of course. Therefore, the commitment of social projects that work to give all children and young people a fair chance to have these things is all the more valuable.

“The past year was challenging on many levels. This is particularly true for young people,” explains Frank Müller, brand manager at the Hamburg-based intralogistics company STILL.” That is why it is particularly important to us this year to show them that we care about them and that we stand up for them and their future.”

And so he took the opportunity to visit all three projects in person and present them with the STILL donation cheque for €5,000.

STILL has been supporting the Mittagskinder Foundation and the Kultur Palast Hamburg Foundation for many years. Since last year, there has also been a cooperation with the Wilhelmsburg Production School.

At the Mittagskinder Foundation, around 200 Hamburg children regularly receive a healthy lunch, the shelter of a community, educational support and assistance with their homework. Since the beginning of the pandemic, many families have also been supported with shopping vouchers.

The Kultur Palast Hamburg Foundation has been bringing children and young people of different nations together in music and dance projects for 40 years, promoting cultural understanding and integration.

The Wilhelmsburg Production School is particularly committed to equal access to education. Here, young people are trained and qualified for the transition to the labour market after leaving school. To this end, the project offers product-oriented learning, among other things, in the five vocational fields of metal, wood, catering, retail and hairdressing.

“Thanks to STILL’s support, we have been able to expand the opportunities for digital learning at our facility,” reports Sabine Haugg, managing director BI Beruf und Integration Elbinseln gGmbH. “We are very happy about this, because being able to work confidently with digital media and tools opens up further opportunities for the pupils on the labour market.”

In addition to its ongoing support for the future, STILL is particularly keen to make children’s eyes shine in the days before Christmas. For this, the company donated around 1,500 chocolate Advent calendars to the Mittagskinder Foundation, the Kultur Palast Billstedt Foundation, the Wilhelmsburg Production School, the Arche Hamburg and the Tafel Hamburg. The sweet surprises for the Christmas season were distributed just in time for 1st December.

“We have around 100 children and young people who are looking forward to Christmas full of excitement. It is wonderful that STILL makes the waiting a little sweeter,” Annalisa Hesse, director of the Arche in Billstedt, is pleased to say. “Thank you very much for your support.”

“I can still remember the great joy and excitement of opening a little door every morning in the days before Christmas,” says Müller. “If we can do our small part to make this delight possible for children, we are happy to do so from the bottom of our hearts.”

Cargotec-Konecranes merger seeks competition clearance

Posted on by Keith McKinley

In order to secure approvals to complete their previously announced merger, Cargotec and Konecranes are in active dialogue and cooperation with the relevant authorities to consider ways to mitigate concerns raised by the competition authorities.

Cargotec and Konecranes submitted a remedy package to the European Commission comprising a commitment to divest Konecranes’ Lift Truck business and Cargotec’s Kalmar Automation Solutions. The proposed divestitures would eliminate overlaps between the parties’ Container Handling Equipment businesses but allow the combined company to combine others and continue to be a strong player in all aspects in container handling equipment.

Cargotec and Konecranes understand that the EC will now examine the proposed remedy package and may conduct a customary market testing.

In a statement, Cargotec and Konecranes have said are confident that the proposed remedies appropriately address the concerns raised by the EC. Should clearance be obtained based on the offered remedy package, the merger would proceed comprising of Konecranes’ Industrial Equipment and Service businesses as currently operated, Cargotec’s MacGregor and Hiab businesses as currently operated, as well as the operations of Konecranes’ Port Solutions and Cargotec’s Kalmar businesses other than the areas subject to remedy discussions.

Cargotec and Konecranes are confident that the future company will create customer value within container handling industry with its wide product and lifecycle service offering, as well as development and innovation capabilities.

The divestments, if made in line with the proposed commitments, will not change the industrial logic behind the combination of Cargotec and Konecranes. The companies will announce the expected high-level financial impact of the proposed remedies once information is available on the exact scope and possible ancillary arrangements relating to the possible remedy divestments in due course.

The final decision on possible divestitures of any businesses as well as possible terms and conditions thereof will be confirmed only after the EC’s review and market testing process, as well as further proceedings with the other competent authorities. The possible divestitures are further subject to various local legal requirements. Cargotec and Konecranes have started an assessment of possible external buyers in order to identify the best alternatives to satisfy the authorities’ requests and to support the future development of these businesses.

Further announcements on the approval processes will be made in due course once further decisions on possible material approval conditions and possible divestitures are made.

Cargotec and Konecranes remain confident that the merger will be completed by the end of H1/2022. Until all merger closing conditions are met and the transaction completed, both companies continue to operate fully separately and independently.

Konecranes launches Battery as a Service

Posted on by Keith McKinley

Konecranes has launched Battery as a Service (BaaS), a breakthrough innovation in both technology and business model to facilitate financing and support our customers of the E-VER range of Li-Ion powered electric forklift trucks.

Through this service, Konecranes provides chargeable, upgradable and remotely monitorable Li-ion batteries to its BaaS users. This will allow the customers to purchase an E-VER electric heavy forklift without battery and to choose the best battery set up that suits their needs. The battery is subscribed to a monthly fee, based on its actual usage which can be monitored in real-time at yourKonecranes.com customer portal (the battery becomes an OPEX). This continuous monitoring guarantees the optimal performance of the battery.

The launch of Konecranes BaaS makes the purchase decision much easier and represents a better balance between the capital expenditure (CAPEX) and the operating expenditure (OPEX) which is also more comparable to the LCC distribution of a diesel engine powered lift truck.

BaaS also represents a future-proof solution to long-existing challenges such as battery degradation, battery renewal, battery upgradability and lower resale value. This service keeps the machine resale value independent from the battery degradation.

Batteries can be renewed when the rental agreement comes to an end or if needed by the renter during the hire period.

The innovation of vehicle-battery separation and battery subscription has come true. The successful launch of BaaS is another significant milestone for Konecranes Lift Trucks.

Patrizia invests €230m in largest Dutch DC

Posted on by Keith McKinley

Patrizia AG, a leading partner for global real assets, has on behalf of its institutional clients invested in the €230m turnkey acquisition of a 233,000 sq m distribution centre in the container hub of Rotterdam, Europe’s largest port, from Dutch logistics developer DHG. The acquisition, which represents the largest logistics investment on record in the Netherlands in terms of square metres, was made on behalf of Patrizia’s Logistik-Invest Europa III Fund and Patrizia PanEuropean.

The Smartlog Maasvlakte distribution centre is a mammoth logistics complex under construction on a 30ha site at Distripark Maasvlakte West on Rotterdam’s most recent land reclamation area and the biggest ever to be developed in the Dutch market.

One of the key features of the property is its extensive solar panel roof which includes 46,000 solar panels spanning 210,000 sq m across 10 buildings, generating sufficient energy to power almost 7,000 homes. The asset also contains the best-in-class technical installations and is fully reliant on alternative energy sources to gas.

Alexander van Gastel, Patrizia’s Director for Transactions Netherlands, said: “The Netherlands is one of the most attractive logistics real estate investment markets in Europe and this acquisition consolidates our presence in Rotterdam, one of the ‘Top 10’ largest container seaports in the world. The deal follows on from our first transaction with DHG in 2019 when we acquired a portfolio of distribution centres in three locations in and around Rotterdam. The city’s port area is a leading European logistics hotspot and competition among occupiers for warehouse space in prime locations such as the Maasvlakte is intense, with little high-quality product available due to the rapid take-up of space by domestic and international occupiers.”

The state-of-the-art logistics hub at the western tip of Rotterdam port is 80% pre-let and will comprise 10 warehouse units ranging in size from ca.17,800 to 22,000 sq m plus mezzanine space (ca.1,500 to 2,000 sq m), outside storing terrain and ancillary offices. Tenants include well-known names in the Dutch market including Odin and Zwaluw Logistics. Each unit will be finished to a high specification offering exceptionally smooth concrete floors with a floor load of 6,000 kg/sq m, electrically operated overhead doors on each dock, battery-charging points, LED lighting and floor heating generated by a climate control heat pump. The development is due to be completed in June 2022.

The addition of Smartlog Maasvlakte to the Patrizia portfolio lifts the company’s logistics assets under management in the Netherlands to over €800m, equivalent to roughly 770,000 sq m spread over eight locations across the country. Patrizia’s European logistics portfolio now totals over €6bn in AUM.

Patrizia and developer DHG have entered into a partnership with Dutch solar energy company Sunrock, part of COFRA Holdings, which will own and operate the solar panel installations at Smartlog Maasvlakte. Altogether the ‘sunroof’ can generate 2.5MW of power which will be fed back to the local grid. Including this asset, Patrizia’s Dutch logistics portfolio now comprises almost 400,000 sq m of solar panels, generating sufficient energy for nearly 12,000 households.

Emile Poort, Patrizia’s Country Manager for the Netherlands and Head of Transactions Benelux, said: “The logistics sector has proven to be a safe haven during the Covid-19 pandemic and as economic recovery continues, we are seeing further growth in e-commerce and increasing demand from logistics occupiers, especially for assets that have strong sustainability credentials.”

Smartlog Maasvlakte is ideally located in Europe’s largest container hub served by state-of-the-art deep-sea, inland waterway barge and rail terminals. Distripark Maasvlakte West has excellent connections to the European hinterland via high-frequency multimodal connections. The proximity of Rotterdam city means employers can also tap into a pool of skilled logistics workers.

Rotterdam is the Netherland’s second largest city with a population of over 650,000 inhabitants representing more than 180 different nationalities and a port covering a surface area of 12,600ha. The Maasvlakte was created in the 1960s by reclaiming land from the North Sea, and Distripark Maasvlakte West, the only ‘greenfield’ site available for distribution in the area, is located on the most recently reclaimed land which extended the port area by 2,000ha upon completion in 2013. Rotterdam port accommodates the arrival of more than 30,000 maritime ships and over 105,000 inland waterway vessels annually, with its intermodal transport connections spanning highways, 400 international rail connections and pipelines. The volume of goods throughput in Rotterdam in 2020 totalled 436.8m tonnes, double the figure for Antwerp port and triple that of Hamburg.

Logistics real estate investment volumes in the Netherlands have surged in 2021 and are set to eclipse last year’s record of €3.4bn. The strength of the market is underpinned by occupier take-up, which was already higher in the first nine months of 2021 than the total achieved in full-year 2020.

Prologis acquires potential logistics site at Heathrow

Posted on by Keith McKinley

Leading developer and owner of logistics property, Prologis, has acquired a prestigious office building at Heathrow Airport, known as the Compass Centre, as part of its ongoing investment into the London logistics market.

The property, previously owned by the Arora Group, is a striking office building, which is currently let to Heathrow Airport Ltd, providing 200,000 sq ft (18,500 sq m) of prime office space close to the airport’s northern perimeter. Set in almost 15 acres of land, the site is just 12 miles (19km) west of central London and is supported by excellent road (M25/M4) and rail links.

Robin Woodbridge, Head of Capital Deployment and Leasing for Prologis in the UK, said: “We are delighted to secure this prestigious building, and its surrounding land, at a time when demand for industrial space and land for development is soaring, especially in areas close to London. Competition is particularly intense for this type of package at the moment, and we are pleased to have been able to complete the transaction off-market.

“While we have no immediate plans to develop the property or land, and the office building will remain let until at least (year), there may be scope to redevelop it for logistics use at some point in the future.”

Commenting on the sale of the Compass Centre, Sanjay Arora, Director at the Arora Group, said: “The Compass Centre has always been a strategic asset in the portfolio for many years. However, with the change in the business environment post COVID, we are pleased to have sold the asset to Prologis, releasing funds to facilitate new projects.”

Once the HQ for British Airways, the Compass Centre was originally built in 1992. The building has been refurbished and provides fully-modernised, energy-efficient office space. The building was acquired by the Arora Family Trust in 2008 as part of a larger portfolio acquisition of the Airport Property Portfolio (APP) from BAA plc.

Imperial opens new logistics base in Germany

Posted on by Keith McKinley

Imperial has opened a new, multi-user logistics facility in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, located 8km from its existing benchmark multi-user business site in Herten.

The launch customer for the new facility will be a long-standing Imperial customer, Lemken, which is a renowned international manufacturer of agricultural machinery. Imperial will transfer Lemken’s spare part logistics operations from Herten to Gelsenkirchen.

The opening of Imperial’s new multi-user facility in Germany supports its organic growth strategy, introduced in 2019, which has seen multiple investments in workforce expansion and operating infrastructure to date.

According to Hakan Bicil, CEO of Imperial’s Logistics International business, “Our latest multi-user facility provides Lemken with further space for growth, and will also mean that another long-standing customer, KONE, has additional space for its own expansion at our Herten location.”

KONE provides elevators, escalators and automatic building doors, as well as solutions for maintenance and modernisation to add value to buildings throughout their life cycle.

“Above all, however, the latest base enables us to welcome further new customers to both business locations, and so we are already actively marketing our expanded capabilities,” added Bicil.

Marco Averesch, previously Warehouse Manager in Herten, will take over  operational responsibility for the Gelsenkirchen site, while Patrick König will be in overall charge of both Herten and Gelsenkirchen.

Werma launches “new benchmark” for industrial signalling

Posted on by Keith McKinley

The new eSIGN signal tower is a breakthrough and a clear sign of Werma‘s continual technological progress: this signal tower sets new standards in terms of individuality and flexibility with full-surface signalling, robust industrial design and impressive features.

As early as 1994, Werma established a global industry standard with the launch of its KombiSIGN signal tower. And this standard has just been upgraded: the eSIGN is the next generation that will define the future of signal towers. Impressive features, supreme compatibility and an industrial design that combines functionality with style and durability.

The new eSIGN has generated a quantum leap in possibilities: full-surface signalling makes it considerably more conspicuous and optimises the signal tower’s potential. This enables all users to monitor processes even more extensively, more comprehensively, more accurately and more proactively. Werma claims the new eSIGN represents a new dimension of signalling.

The eSIGN is a shining example of a signal tower with visibly improved performance: more colours, more effects and more individuality. Thanks to the modularity of its electrical components combined with the latest LED technology, different signalling modes can be produced using multiple colours, brightness levels and light effects – from the classic traffic light display to fully customised settings. Variable fill-level displays or full-surface signals can also be generated with ease using this signal tower. This not only allows users to oversee processes, but also brings completely new possibilities.

Werma says the eSIGN is the best signal tower it has ever developed. The range of applications is as diverse as the eSIGN itself: from alarm signalling to access control, visual warnings, statuses, fill-level or fault displays right through to material stock levels and building security. It can even be used as an acoustic warning system.

Acoustic signalling is an indispensable component that supplements visual signalling in daily work processes across the globe, from production facilities to logistics, building technology or mechanical and plant engineering applications. Their aim is to ensure that processes run smoothly, to secure the safety of personnel and protect the equipment being used. With the comforting feeling that everything is running smoothly.

For this reason, the new eSIGN is equipped with a siren that can produce up to 10 different tones. These can also be configured to suit specific applications. Naturally, the siren can be combined with light effects, has variable volume options and is easy to set up.

The high technological standards and user-friendly operation of this new Werma signal tower are not at all contradictory: depending on the variant, eSIGN can be easily controlled using IO-Link or configured via USB. It can be mounted on the floor, on tubes or on walls.

The two different sizes of the eSIGN also offer maximum flexibility: 15 or 9 segments, with or without siren, standard 24V version with configuration transfer via USB or using IO-Link technology.

The robust industrial design also delivers what it promises: the high IP66/IP69k protection class ensures improved resistance to typical substances used in production, while the UL type 4X enclosure guarantees resistance to UV radiation and environmental influences.

Werma says the custom modes, acoustic signals, free selection of light effects and robust industrial design mean the new eSIGN is simply always the right choice.

Furnolic picks Prologis Park Ryton for net zero DC

Posted on by Keith McKinley

Prologis, the developer and owner of logistics parks, has agreed a lease with global e-commerce business, Furnolic Co. Ltd, the UK subsidiary of Ziel Group, for the latest unit at Prologis Park Ryton in Warwickshire.

The 10-year lease for the 148,461 sq ft (13,800 sq m) unit is Furnolic’s first physical site in the UK. The Chinese e-commerce business, which also trades under the name Songmics, Vasagle and Feandrea, specialises in homeware, furniture and pet furniture and is one of the largest global retailers on Amazon, operating across the US (Ameziel), Germany (Euziel), Japan (Zieljp), France, Spain, Italy, Canada, and Mexico.

Prologis Park Ryton is one of the most sought-after industrial and logistics locations in the UK, with current occupiers including Jaguar Land Rover, DHL and LEVC. The location has six major motorways within 14 miles of the park, along with a labour force of almost 900,000 people in a 30-minute radius. Once occupied, the new building will create 20-30 new jobs for the local area.

Tom Price, capital leasing & development director, at Prologis UK, said: “This is an important milestone for Furnolic as they secure their first location in the UK, and we are delighted to be welcoming another occupier to this prime logistics site. Furnolic is a valued global Prologis customer, and we are aiming to make the move to the new site a seamless and positive experience for the business.

“The attractiveness of Prologis Park Ryton, and the Midlands in general, as a location for logistics facilities, is clear. Companies of all shapes and sizes are recognising the value that the area holds as a means of expanding or further strengthening their e-commerce and delivery operations.”

Tong Wang, director at Furnolic, said: “We are very happy to be working with Prologis to set up our first logistics site in UK, which will provide better service to our customers in the UK, as well as in Europe. It is of great significance for us to expand our business in the European and global markets.”

Like every Prologis warehouse constructed in the UK for the past 13 years, DC8 at Prologis Park Ryton is net zero carbon in construction (based on the UKGBC net zero carbon framework).

Through a partnership with Planet Mark and climate action charity, Cool Earth, Prologis has measured and reduced the building’s whole life carbon footprint and mitigated five times the unavoidable embodied carbon emissions (carbon associated with the construction of the building) by protecting vital areas of rainforest.

As a result, DC8 is protecting 107 acres of rainforest canopy in the Peruvian Amazon, locking in almost 35,000 tonnes of carbon, protecting 24,000 trees, and supporting 652 indigenous people who are empowered to protect the rainforest.

Prologis is also constructing a further 330,770 sq ft (30,700 sq m) unit at Prologis Park Ryton, which is the last remaining plot. This unit is available to let and will be completed in August 2022.

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