Brett help fulfil warehouse industry demand

Company supplies materials for large-scale distribution centres in Felixstowe and Dartford

THE continued rise in e-commerce with roughly a quarter of retail sales currently being made online, has meant the construction of more large-scale distribution centres, capable of storing greater inventory to satisfy customer demand.

Brett Concrete have a successful track record in supplying material for large-scale warehouses, having previously delivered 15,500 cubic metres of ready-mixed concrete for Amazon’s fulfilment centre at Tilbury, back in 2017, and more recently supplied materials for two very large distribution centres in Felixstowe and Dartford.

Last August, Brett Aggregates were approached by TSL and Rockland Concrete, specifying aggregate material for the construction of a ‘mega’ distribution centre in Felixstowe (pictured). More than 60,000 tonnes of sand and gravel ballast, sub-base, and granite was supplied from the company’s Ipswich site, less than a mile away, for the floor of the building, a temporary concrete plant on site, as well as the required gravel and sub-bases for the main shed itself.

Meanwhile, Brett Concrete also supplied a large distribution centre in Dartford, totalling 450,000 sq. ft in size. Replacing the former Littlebrook Power Station, this site has been acquired by IKEA, who have signed a 15-year lease for the well-positioned location, close to the Dartford Tunnel.

Joining the nearby ‘Mega Shed’ Amazon warehouse, the site’s strategic location is growing into one of the South East’s foremost logistical centres, although, as part of the development of the industrial park, the developers have pledged almost a third of the total Littlebrook site for the creation of wildlife habitats and natural open spaces.

With these two distribution centres being so large, significant planning and co-ordination was required during their supply.

‘We supplied 22,908 cubic metres of concrete from our Northfleet depot for piling, external and internal floors,’ explained Jay Jensen, field sales manager at Brett Concrete. ‘The success of getting this completed in time for handover was due to a team effort from operations, production, transport, and sales.’