NewCold Logistics, the global deep-frozen warehousing and distribution specialist, has agreed contracts for almost 50% of the additional 88,000 pallet spaces currently being added to its Wakefield warehousing facility.

Fully operational by March 2018, the 42m-high cold storage plant will accommodate 143,000 pallets at minus 23 degrees. All consignments for short and long-term storage are received, stored and despatched using the latest NewCold-designed automated systems to ensure minimum manual handling and absolute cold chain integrity. Focus is on product quality, from factory to customer.

“We are making great progress and comfortably meeting our growth plan” says Country Director, Jon Miles. “Our clients are looking for a logistics and handling solution which combines guaranteed product quality with just-in-time precision, while keeping energy output and road miles consistently low.”

To this end, NewCold has also invested in a modern logistics fleet comprising 50 Tractor units – 20 of which are new FH 6×2 Volvos – and 70 trailers – including 44 pallet-capacity moving floor double-deckers supplied by Gray and Adams.

The high-volume temperature controlled trailers dock directly into a frozen environment so that there is no risk of temperature fluctuations or exposure to ambient air. Then, a NewCold-designed conveyor system with shuttle cars and buffer lanes, handling 175 pallets in and out every hour, dovetails with each trailer to achieve an unloading time of just six minutes.

Further automation at the site includes robots used to ‘pick and pack’ orders so that human error is eliminated and pallets are never ‘lost’ in the system, thereby ensuring constant quality control.

“Our speed of development, both in the UK and globally, is underpinned by the quality of service we provide” adds Jon. “The fact that we already have long term contracts for half of our additional 88,000 spaces, I believe speaks for itself.”

Over the last few years NewCold has demonstrated its ability to provide collaborative supply chain solutions for food manufacturers and retailers in many European and international countries. By building a series of state-of-the-art cold stores in the UK, France, Germany, Poland, America and Australia the company now provides a fully integrated range of pan-European and global frozen food supply chain services.