Gazeley initiates new port centric solution

Gazeley has launched Felixstowe Portside, a new ‘port centric’ logistics park development supported by UK’s largest container port at Felixstowe.

Gazeley development director, James Behrens said: “Port centric logistics is challenging the traditional model by offering a supply chain solution for goods arriving at the port and enables whole sections of the supply chain to be removed resulting in faster distribution at lower operational cost.”

Felixstowe Portside will offer up to 530,000 sq ft (49,237 sq m) of design, build warehouse and storage development opportunities with direct access to the Port of Felixstowe. Felixstowe handles significantly more container traffic than any other UK port with plans to increase its capacity by almost 50%.

The site is located within the Trinity Estate, which has a private road network adjacent to the port’s boundary thereby enabling the site to be classified as portside. As such, the site offers potential savings in import duties, other fiscal costs and the ability to utilise overweight containers giving up to 40% additional shipping capacity.

As imports from overseas, in particular China, continue to rise, deep-sea container traffic is expected to more than double in the next fifteen years. Gazeley is positioning itself to offer its customers operating European-wide and global distribution networks added value by promoting port centric warehouse solutions. This means as goods arrive through the port, merchandise can be unloaded, sorted, consolidated and redistributed from within the existing security of the complex. This enables whole sections of the supply chain to be removed, increasing efficiency and ultimately driving down distribution costs.

Port of Felixstowe CEO, Chris Lewis said: “We view Felixstowe Portside as a natural progression in the changing shift of modern logistics facilities, designed to complement the already established range of port centric services on offer to both the shipper and cargo owner.”