Reed Boardall completes work on largest and most modern cold store in the UK
Leading temperature controlled food storage and distribution businesses, Reed Boardall, has completed a 12 month multi-million pound project to further expand its dedicated, single site operation in North Yorkshire, once again making it the most extensive and modern cold storage facility in the country.
As volumes through the company’s cold store and transport operation have continued to increase in line with the growth of customers’ businesses, Reed Boardall had put plans in place to expand capacity to 168,000 pallets prior to the start of the pandemic last year.
With four state-of-the-art cold stores at the company’s 55 acre site in Boroughbridge, the 110,000sq ft extension to its newest cold store will give Reed Boardall capacity to handle its customers’ continued growth going forward and to seamlessly manage peaks in usage.
Led by Andrew Baldwin, managing director of Reed Boardall’s cold storage division, the project got underway in March 2020 with Leeds-based Marshall (Building Contractors) once again acting as primary contractor. Featuring the latest mobile racking system, the extended cold store follows the successful template already established at the Boroughbridge site.
Mr Baldwin explains: “ Our customers’ ongoing organic growth has resulted in increased storage and distribution needs and we are happy to invest in the infrastructure which will enable us to continue to look after their best interests and to grow alongside them. We have undertaken this project to align ourselves with our customers, and, as a business, it’s vital that we continue to move forward.”
Marcus Boardall, chief executive of Reed Boardall, adds: “Despite intense pressure on the supply chain in 2020, we were able to undertake and complete the extension project on schedule. From the turmoil of the pandemic to uncertainties around Brexit, we and our customers have faced some real challenges over the last year, and this latest investment makes us well-placed to continue to swiftly and efficiently respond to our customers’ changing logistics requirements.
“Having consistently served the UK food sector for over 25 years, our single site business model and ability to consolidate loads cost efficiently have proved well-suited to the needs food processors and retailers across the UK. The extension to Cold Store 4 marks another important milestone in the company’s development, once again demonstrating our ongoing commitment to working as a reliable and trusted partner to leading food suppliers nationwide.”
Reed Boardall is one of the largest temperature-controlled food distribution businesses in the UK, storing and delivering frozen food from manufacturers across Britain, Europe and further afield to all the UK’s best-known supermarkets. With a fleet of 196 vehicles operating 24 hours a day, year round, it delivers 12,000 pallets of frozen food daily for its clients as well as providing a range of complementary services including ancillary blast freezing, picking and packing.
The company employs almost 800 staff at its single site in Boroughbridge, Yorkshire.