The Mersey Multimodal Gateway (3MG) has exceptional communications with direct
Page 84
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
links to the West Coast Mainline, the M62 and M56 motorways, the River Mersey and the Manchester Ship Canal.
Five container trains a day arrive at Stobart Park, the group's 3MG site, accounting for around 40% of the North-West's railborne container traffic. But there's still the final leg of the journey to come, the road-based haul from the railhead to the retailer's regional distribution centre. And it's this leg of the journey that Stobart is hoping to revolutionise at 3MG.
Stobart Developments is the design, build and fit-out arm of the transport group, and it has big plans for the 90 acres of brownfield land at 3MG, to take advantage of the multimodal facilities at Widnes. The prime development site could absorb a 1,000,000ft2 warehouse or a smaller 625,000ft2facility plus a neighbouring 310,000ff shed,
Stobart can take in containers for a client direct from the railhead, unload the contents and warehouse them ready for distribution straight to stores, cutting out the journey to a remote regional distribution centre.
Sorted goods can then flow out of 3MG on excellent local road links, which will be boosted considerably after the government confirmed in its Comprehensive Spending Review that a new £500m Mersey Gateway bridge is to be completed.
Whoever takes advantage of the multimodal opportunities at 3MG will count Tesco as an immediate neighbour.
The supermarket giant chose 3MG as the site of its new north-west regional chilled distribution centre with 528,000ft2 of warehousing space.
The Tesco warehouse is even powered by a biomass plant burning out-of-date and waste food collected from stores. Other clients will be able to take advantage of this green power source when they sign up for 3MG.
The Tesco site was taken from planning to commissioning in 12 months, and the same is possible for other clients at 3MG.
And that's the sort of service that Stobart Developments is planning to offer to new clients at 3MG. Not only will it boost the company and bring efficiencies for British industry, but create jobs and regenerate a derelict area, • For further information on commercial facilities available at Stobart Park, contact: Richard Butcher at richard. butcher@stobartgroup. corn, or Andy Bathgate at andy.bathgate stobartdevelopments.com