18 October 2012
Prologis, the leading global owner, operator and developer of industrial real estate, has announced that it has signed a lease agreement in the fourth quarter for a one million square feet purpose-built distribution centre at the Daventry International Rail Freight Terminal (DIRFT II) with Sainsbury’s Supermarkets Ltd. The new building will allow Sainsbury’s to develop its national distribution operations in an energy-efficient, rail-connected facility.
“The distribution centre at DIRFT II is a significant investment for Sainsbury’s,” said Roger Burnley, managing director, General Merchandise, Clothing and Logistics, at Sainsbury’s. “We are always looking at ways to serve our customers better and this depot will provide us with a central location to support our growing general merchandise business. We look forward to working with the team at Prologis to deliver this important addition to our logistics network.”
Located beside the M1 motorway and the West Coast Mainline railway, the new facility will have both road and rail operations. A new intermodal terminal, which will connect to the existing DIRFT railway sidings, will be installed alongside the building. The distribution centre itself has been designed to achieve BREEAM 2011 ‘very good’ accreditation and the best possible EPC rating for its size.
“We understood some years ago that rail would become increasingly important to the logistics sector and we have invested in strategic rail-connected sites,” said Andrew Griffiths, managing director, Prologis UK. “We were therefore able to understand Sainsbury’s requirements and to provide a facility that meets the company’s operational and CSR needs. As Sainsbury’s decision demonstrates, the move towards rail freight is now gathering momentum.”
Prologis expects to start work on site in early 2013 and the facility will be complete in autumn 2014.
As of June 30, 2012, Prologis had approximately 18 million square feet completed and under development in the UK, as well as 1,075 acres of land available for future development.
Cushman & Wakefield acted for Sainsbury’s, while Jones Lang LaSalle and Burbage Realty represented Prologis.
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