Designing from the inside out

By COLIN TAYLOR



A national distribution centre designed "from the inside out" for one of New Zealand's largest industrial safety equipment suppliers is the latest in an increasing number of large industrial complexes being constructed at Wiri in Manukau City.

Wesfarmers Industrial and Safety has taken a nine-year lease, with a nine-year right of renewal, over the new 7000sq m purpose-built warehouse and office building on about 1ha of land off Kerrs Rd.

The building has gone up in just eight months, thanks to a combination of modern construction techniques, including a post-tension concrete floor which does not require internal expansion joints or cutting, and the use of prefabricated tilt slab concrete walls.

Wesfarmers has been planning the move for more than three years and has relocated from sites in East Tamaki and Mt Roskill. The company used the services of Mike Houlker, industrial sales and leasing specialist with Bayleys Real Estate, to identify a variety of locations around the Auckland industrial regions that might suit its purposes.

The selected locations went through a rigorous assessment process before the final decision was made to establish the new distribution centre on a greenfields site owned by Auckland property development and construction company Murdoch Newell.

John Burmester, logistics manager for Wesfarmers Industrial and Safety, says Wiri was chosen because it offered a site large enough to consolidate the group's operations into one cost-efficient and well-positioned location.

"The site is also future-proof with considerable room for expansion should we require additional space in the future."

Wesfarmers contracted warehouse logistics specialist Barry Darroch to design the warehouse's computerised storage and distribution system.

Once the precise amount of space required to house the warehouses racking and conveyor system was calculated, the building was designed to fit around that.

John Murdoch, Murdoch Newell's development manager, says designing buildings from the inside out has been one of the recent advances in design construction.

Murdoch Newell was established in 1968 and has developed and built a large range of commercial and industrial buildings, including warehouses, office parks, bulk retail centres and banks. The company has been involved in over 50 projects on the North Shore and more than 30 buildings in Manukau City.

Murdoch says companies commonly underestimate the amount of space they require or don't make sufficient provision for future expansion.

This has been allowed for in the design of the Wesfarmers building. About 1200sq m at the rear has been walled off and subleased to PBT Couriers, one of Wesfarmers biggest service providers. It handles a large number of Wesfarmers deliveries.

They have ended up with a building that fits their present requirements perfectly but enables them to easily expand their warehouse by removing the inter-tenancy walls and taking over space at the end of the building.

These days warehouse design is also focused on going up rather than out. Advances in racking systems and fork hoist technology means products can be stacked a lot higher.

The Wesfarmers 5300sq m warehouse space has a 10m stud which is typical of much of the warehouse construction that is springing up around Auckland, says Houlker, who negotiated the lease.

This contrasts with 5m to 7.5m- high studs which are typical of older-style warehouse buildings

Houlker says advantages include economies of scale and a more efficient working environment for the tenant and savings on building and development costs because less land is required.

The price of industrial land has trebled in some parts of Auckland in the past few years and now represents an increasingly significant occupancy cost.

Burmester says Wiri offers good access to the motorway, well clear of the congestion that can be an issue with industrial locations closer to central Auckland. A new overpass will further improve motorway access to Wiri.

He says another major attraction of the Kerrs Rd site is that it offers dual road access and a big-enough footprint to incorporate an 850sq m drive-through canopy along the side of the warehouse.

High-quality bathrooms with showers for staff who exercise are a feature of the building, as is a cafeteria that leads on to a courtyard where staff can relax.