Goodman develops supersized parcel facility for Australia Post

Australia Post facility

Goodman Group and Australia Post have started construction of what will be the largest parcel facility and delivery centre in the southern hemisphere.

Covering almost ten football fields at Goodman’s Redbank Motorway Estate in the City of Ipswich, Queensland, Australia Post has committed to a 15-year lease on the 13.5-hectare site. Australia Post will invest more than $200m in the new hub and joins other major logistics customers TNT – Fedex, DB Schenker and Northline, who have all committed to the estate.

Bob Black, Group Chief Operating Officer for Australia Post, said: “Australians spent $21.3bn online last year, driving parcel volumes up, and this love affair with online shopping isn’t slowing down. Our $200m investment – which includes automated processing technology and improved parcel scanning and tracking – is demonstration of our commitment to Queensland jobs and to remaining Australia’s preferred and most trusted delivery provider, and will ensure we’re well-equipped to manage future volume growth.”

He added: “We chose Redbank because it’s strategically located between Brisbane and Ipswich and sits at the edge of three major motorway interchanges, providing multiple access points to arterial routes. The site will be operational prior to peak period 2019, and will be capable of processing up to 700,000 parcels per day, and will be our key delivery hub and parcel processing centre in Queensland.”

According to Australia Post’s latest Inside Australian Online Shopping Report, Queenslanders are avid online shoppers with the suburbs in and around Ipswich having one of the highest category growth rates in online shopping for homewares and appliances, with year-on-year growth exceeding 38%.

More than 500 people will be based at the new facility in Ipswich which is fast becoming a leading location for online retailing and parcel distribution in Queensland. Once Redbank is fully developed, Goodman’s investment in this key Brisbane location will exceed $1bn. To date Goodman has committed over $400m to the estate.

General Manager for Goodman Australia, Jason Little said: “Advancements in technology, supply chain improvements and increasing online sales, are driving demand for industrial property all around the world. Our customers want to be in close proximity to their customers and Redbank Motorway Estate’s location, combined with advanced sortation technologies, allows thousands of products to be ordered online, picked, packed and delivered to Brisbane and the Gold Coast in half a day. 

“As our customers focus on improving their delivery, online and supply chain operations, Goodman has been investing in the best located properties to assist. We’ve extended our existing landbank at Redbank by another 87 hectares to ensure future supply for this growing demand.”

The project will be developed quickly over five stages to allow Australia Post the flexibility to start operations as soon as possible. The first stage of construction (approximately 24,000 sq m) will be completed by the end of this year to enable the sortation installation to commence in January 2019. Overall completion is targeted for October 2019 – in time for the peak Christmas period.

Source: Goodman Group