Onward Holdings Ltd has achieved planning permission from the local authority for just under 10,000 sqft of premium, modern, open plan office space at its managed Castleford warehouse, which will offer existing customers the opportunity to further integrate and expand their operations.
The family-run business will build a collaborative workspace extension at the Willowbridge Lane facility, which has excellent parking and is close to both the town centre and J31 of the M62. Onward Holdings is hoping that the new facility will attract multiple tenants needing space for a sales office or administration block etc.
Quality logistics and warehouse space is at a premium in the north of England – Onward Holdings is in the market for purchasing more land or sites to offer design and build opportunities to alleviate the shortage – so extending office accommodation at Castleford is sure to be welcome by clients looking to bring all their staff under one roof.
Currently almost fully leased, leading logistics companies choose Castleford because of the site’s ideal location in the heart of Yorkshire, close to the major motorway networks, and the flexibility that a managed 3PL warehouse from Onward Holdings brings.
There have already been significant investments at the site, including the latest Warehouse Management System (WMS) technology for streamlining stock taking, order picking and shipping processes, which improves productivity by freeing up staff to concentrate on other duties.
Solar panels are installed to reduce energy costs, it is equipped with fork lifts that can handle pallets, IBCs and other items up to three tonnes, whilst for non-rigid packaging, the warehouse can individually handball sacks and cartons on to pallets.
These investments complement the Castleford warehouse’s flexibility, which allows for pallet racked and bulked storage space with two dock level loading doors and several ground-level loading doors, including covered loading bays, to facilitate the handling of food and non-food related items, computerised order picking and various pallet handling solutions.
Onward Holdings Director, Neil Storey, said: “We have listened to clients telling us that they would prefer to concentrate their admin or sales staff at the Castleford site, but are hampered by a lack of office space. We aim to put that right and have planning permission from the council for a major extension of the facilities.”
Castleford is within easy reach of the northern container ports, Doncaster Airport and the railway freight network via the nearby Wakefield Europort. According to Onward Holdings around 80% of the UK’s population is accessible in four hours, making the site ideal for bulk distribution items.
West Yorkshire-based Onward Holdings is a fourth-generation family-run business which specialises in operating highly competitively priced industrial warehousing and retail parks. Promotion of the site is being undertaken by Andrew Miller Chartered Surveyors of Sheffield.
