SmartParc has partnered with SEGRO to deliver a high-tech food manufacturing and distribution campus on a 112-acre site at Spondon, Derby. SmartParc SEGRO Spondon will pave the way for the food industry to collaborate to meet the challenges of sustainable production whilst addressing the need for efficient direct routes to consumers.
As a development partner, SEGRO will provide a multi-million-pound investment to regenerate the brownfield site. SmartParc will provide the onsite managed services, supporting the food community to increase production efficiency and drive reduced operational costs through collaborative working. SmartParc’s revolutionary energy sharing infrastructure will utilise wind and solar combined with central services, to deliver the most sustainable food production community in the country.
The announcement of the partnership follows Derby City Council granting planning permission in June and the agreement of grant funding contributions from D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership and Derby City Council. D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership has allocated €14m (£12m) towards the project from the Government’s Getting Building Fund – the largest single allocation from D2N2’s €51.3m (£44m) allocation.
Jackie Wild, SmartParc CEO said: “We are delighted to announce SEGRO as our development partner as we work towards our goal of building the first world-leading, sustainable, high-tech food manufacturing and distribution campus at SmartParc SEGRO Spondon. Our partnership with SEGRO and the continued support of D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership and Derby City Council will enable us to bring jobs to the region and address the increasingly critical challenges facing food manufacturing supply chains. We want to thank everyone involved in realising this vision in record time. From the first walk around site in May 2020 to starting on site in September 2021- it shows what can be achieved when everyone pushes in the same direction with a shared agenda. The creation of this dedicated asset class is pivotal in achieving a more sustainable future for food production and giving a framework for the food industry to build upon. We want to embrace Derby’s engineering heritage to ensure that SmartParc is the home of the next food revolution. We already have a significant level of interest from manufacturers and retailers both from the UK and overseas and we are starting work immediately so we can welcome our first ‘collaborators’ to SmartParc early next year.”
Andrew Pilsworth, Managing Director, National Logistics at SEGRO, added: “SmartParc’s bold new concept for food manufacturing and distribution has the potential to be a true game-changer. Over the last 18 months, we’ve seen the importance of having robust supply chains closer to home and being able to quickly and efficiently distribute goods. SmartParc enables both of these within the vital food and drink sector and does so while keeping sustainability at its heart. We look forward to working together to make the concept a success. By backing innovative projects like this one, we are levelling up areas across the country by building stronger and more resilient local economies, which can support jobs and prosperity in our communities.”
