The Co-operative Group has opened a new distribution centre to service the whole of Scotland and Northern Ireland, following a £25 million investment.
The 503,000sqft multi-temperature depot at Newhouse near Glasgow will be fully operational by September, when it will employ 1,000 staff.
It will serve 618 stores in Scotland and Northern Ireland with an output of 60m cases a year and will operate a fleet of 370 lorries, 140 forklift trucks and low level order pickers.
The Co-operative Group’s CEO Peter Marks unveiled a plaque at the new depot in a ceremony on Tuesday.
A spokesperson confirmed that the distribution centre will handle large volumes of fruit and vegetables.
Newhouse, which occupies a 34-acre site, will replace The Co-operative’s existing distribution operations in Pitreavie, which closed earlier this year, and Cumbernauld and Harthill, which will close before the end of 2011.
The supermarket said it hopes as many staff as possible from these sites will transfer to Newhouse.
The depot will receive railfreight as well as roadfreight, as The Co-op looks to cut emissions. This follows a successful pilot, which began last year, which saw a daily rail service carry produce between Daventry and a railfreight terminal at Mossend, near Newhouse.
Marks said the new Scottish depot is “a major investment in, and commitment to, the local community”.
No comments yet