Construction is now under way at the Raven Locks, a 172,000 sq ft speculative industrial scheme in Salford, following the appointment of Portal Construction NW Ltd as main contractors.
Portal Construction NW were appointed to undertake works on the 14-acre Ravenscraig Road site, with completion anticipated for February 2021. Despite the challenges brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic, the contractor has continued to make excellent progress on site and remains on programme.
The completed scheme will offer 3 detached, self-contained units ranging from 29,500 – 61,000 sq ft along with a terrace of a further 3 units ranging from 11,000 – 19,000 sq ft. Each unit will comprise high quality warehouse space, extensive secure yards and dedicated carparking along with office accommodation and amenities. The larger units will also enjoy other benefits including 10 metre eaves height whilst the biggest unit will boast 5 dock level access doors as well as trailer parking spaces.
Raven Locks is ideally situated in Little Hulton on the outskirts of Salford, with 2 miles of both Junction 3 and 4 of the M61 and close to Junction 15 of the M60. This gives easy access to Manchester city centre, Manchester International Airport and on to Liverpool and the south. The local demographic is also attractive to would-be tenants with access to an NVQ+ qualified workforce of 235,600 and potentially 6 million customers within a 60-minute drive radius.
Network Space Development Director Joe Burnett said: “We are delighted to have appointed Portal Construction NW to deliver the Raven Locks scheme which will offer much-needed high quality modern industrial units in a very sought-after location.
“The development will have a positive socioeconomic impact on the local and wider area by bringing a longstanding brownfield site back into use and provided accommodation for local businesses as well as attracting inward investment. We are encouraged by the level of enquiries so far and remain confident that we will continue to see strong demand for Raven Locks given the site’s positioning, connectivity across the North West, Greater Manchester and key transport hubs, as well as having access to a sizeable and qualified workforce within close proximity of the scheme.”
Raven Locks is one of a series of developments being delivered by Network Space Developments across the North West in partnership with global investors, InfraRed Capital Partners. Architects on the scheme were AEW Architects.
Asset and property management services have been awarded to industrial asset management specialists NSM.
NSM has also been appointed as agents, along with JLL and DTRE.