Freight firm opens doors on £14m warehouse
A FREIGHT company has opened the doors of its new multi-million pound warehouse in Rochdale, as more jobs look to be on the way.
A council cabinet member said the move by German firm Dachser, shows the strength of Rochdale’s business potential, despite uncertainty surrounding national politics.
The logistics provider, which has moved from its previous Chichester Street base, will celebrate its 10th anniversary in Rochdale next year.
The new 9.2-acre warehouse and hub, announced at the start of the year, is now operational at Kingsway Business Park and represents a £14.4 million investment.
Gary Atkinson, Rochdale branch manager, said the 170 ha site was the ideal location when the company outgrew its previous base.
“We expect to recruit more people and we always look to recruit locally,” he said.
“We have an established and awardwinning apprentice programme with a number of apprentices on the Rochdale team.”
He added: “With this new construction, our location in the north of England is evolving into an important hub within Dachser’s European network.
“Ensuring that the new facility remained within Rochdale was an important consideration in the interests of the company’s workforce.
“Dachser UK currently employs a total of 448 people, 106 of whom are based in Rochdale where the company expects to create many jobs over the next five years.”
The company first came to the town in 2010 when it acquired J. A. Leach Transport, growing five-fold to its current turnover of £20m.
Dachser bosses said the Kingsway location, connected to the M62, is optimally situated from a logistics viewpoint with access to over 1.6 million people of working age living within a 30-minute commute.
Coun John Blundell, cabinet member for regeneration, business, skills and Employment at Rochdale Council and board director of the RDA, said: “The fact that prestigious companies like Dachser are growing and creating new jobs in our borough, even as national politics continues to be dominated by such uncertainty, is testament to the strength of Rochdale’s business offer.”