The Co-operative Group has officially opened its £38m state-of-the-art regional distribution centre at Avonmouth.
At 435,780sq ft, the warehouse is among the largest in the region and will create around 1,000 jobs by the time it is fully operational in May.
The facility, at Cabot Park, will operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week supplying nearly 500 Co-operative food stores across the South West and South Wales with around 1.2m cases of produce a week.
It was developed as part of a major overhaul of the Co-operative’s logistics network for its food stores following its acquisition of Bristol-based Somerfield in 2009.
The building is the first joint venture between Midlands-based property specialists Gallan Group and Stoford, who commissioned Birmingham architects Webb Gray to design the innovative, highly-sustainable scheme, which was constructed by VolkerFitzpatrick, also based in Birmingham.
The building was pre-let to the Co-operative Group on 33 acres of land previously owned by The Crown Estate and occupied by Honda as part of its UK vehicle storage facility.
Stoford joint managing director Dan Gallagher said: “Everyone worked tirelessly to ensure that this major project became a reality. We are delighted to have played a part in an initiative which will see a tremendous boost to the local economy and employment.”
Gallan director Karen Wilson added: “This multi-million pound investment will have a significant impact on the local community and its economy for many years to come.”
And Webb Gray director David Delaney said: “We enjoyed working closely with The Co-operative Group to ensure our design featured the latest standards in energy saving and recycling initiatives which has resulted in BREEAM Excellent rating – the highest in the industry.”
The scheme is Stoford’s second major project in Bristol. It bought Redland House, which overlooks the Downs, to convert to a 60,000 sq ft headquarters office development for Simplyhealth.
Pictured, from left, Rob Awford, Axa Real Estate; Marty Gallagher, Gallan; Jackie Gallagher, Gallan; Adrian Buxton, The Co-operative Food’s distribution general manager at Avonmouth; Dan Gallagher, Stoford
