The Princess Royal returned to Burton-upon-Trent recently to open a £50m distribution centre for Palletforce.
It is not the first time The Princess Royal has visited the site, having opened the original distribution centre in 2008. After extensive investment, the company has grown from employing 80 staff to around 400, and turnover now stands at £100m up from £8 million. The new state-of-the-art facility hopes to provide a further 70 local jobs and approximately 700 across the company’s wider network.
The new facility is equipped with the most up-to-date technology and computerised systems, across its 620,000 square feet, and with the latest in warehouse packing equipment, such as storage trolleys and packing stations, the distribution centre should be capable of dealing with around 30,000 pallets of goods every day. With 450 truck parking spaces, the SuperHub sits on a 38-acre site, making it the largest of its kind in Europe.
Michael Conroy, chief executive officer of Palletforce,said after the Royal visit:
“We were thrilled to welcome back HRH The Princess Royal for what is the start of a new era for Palletforce. We’ve come a long way since her last visit in 2008, and the new £50m SuperHub represents an emphatic expression of confidence in our future.”
The new facility also incorporates some environmental features in its design. Automatic LED lighting, electric car charging points, and harvested rainwater for external taps and toilets all go towards making the SuperHub as green as possible.
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