The steel structure is in place to create a 50,000 sq ft South West distribution facility for pallet and container pooling company CHEP UK on eight acres at Central Park, Avonmouth. Construction is on a fast track for completion in spring 2012 and will be part of a CHEP UK network that issues, collects, conditions and reissues more than 300m pallets and containers from an international network of service centres.
Central Park owners Delta Properties are working in partnership with Goodman UK Logistics to construct this pre-let building. The Bristol office of GVA has been appointed in a project management role and the building contractors are Winvic Construction.
“With the government signalling its intention to get infrastructure and construction projects moving once again in Bristol we are, perhaps, now seeing a renewed energy in the industry here in the south west for 2012,” said Paul Hobbs, a director of joint letting agent GVA. He added that Central Park has the potential for a further four million square feet of new space making it the region’s largest distribution park.
“The pre-let to CHEP UK follows significant infrastructure work at Central Park to create a business destination fit and ready for new occupiers," he said. "This unit is being developed in a really short time frame and demonstrates Delta Properties’ ability to serve occupier demand in the region. With Co-op’s new 450,000 sq ft regional distribution centre at a similar stage in development, there are now two major bespoke construction projects in progress in Avonmouth. Over recent years the industrial property market has reacted to changes in the occupier market by pulling away from speculative development and, as such, it has been many years since we have seen construction activity on this scale in the region.”
Central Park, which covers 640-acres, can support single units of over 1m sq ft in footprint and, according to GVA, Delta is talking to other potential occupiers in conjunction with their principal development partner Roxhill.
