Nestlé boss lifts lid on £8m investment to keep York site running for decades
Nestlé has revealed how a multi-million-pound investment will keep its operations in York running for decades to come.
One of the city’s largest employers has invested around £8 million to extend the working life of its York Distribution Centre, in Haxby Road.
The centre supplies the north of England and Scotland with its world-renowned products, including the Kit Kat which has been made in York for almost 90 years.
Speaking to The Press, Richard Hastings, head of logistics at Nestlé UK and Ireland, said it was “incredibly to important” to invest in the York site to ensure it continues to be a key part of the company’s operations.
“It’s probably the biggest project we’re going to undertake in the next two or three years,” he said.
The refurbishment has seen six high-bay stacker cranes replaced in Nestlé’s 32,500-pallet warehouse.
Richard said the upgrades will ensure the cranes continue to operate for another 25 to 30 years.
A 70-metre crane – almost as tall as York Minster – was used to lift the 25-metre cranes out of the warehouse. The work had to be completed around the busy site and completed in time for August, when the site will start shipping orders out for the Christmas period.
“We only get one chance at Christmas,” Richard said. “If you don’t deliver it for Christmas, it doesn’t get delivered to the customers.
“But we’ve had a lot of years of experience in understanding what customers want and how to deliver that.”
A section of the roof of Nestlé’s pallet warehouse in Haxby Road, York, is removed so a crane can be lifted out as part of renovation work.
He said the investment at the site means it will be “ready for whatever comes”.
“It’s about us having a building which is fully refurbished with all the great facilities for the team so that whatever comes, we’re ready and prepared to deal with it – as we’ve have to do in the past with things like the pandemic.”
Meanwhile, the refurbishment will also focus on supporting welfare facilities for staff.
Richard said this was particularly important as the site continues to strive towards an equal gender balance within its workforce.
“One of the problems with the building,” he said, “is that when it was built 40 years ago, logistics was very male dominated – in fact, it was 100 per cent male.
“Consequently, there isn’t a gender balanced approach things like toilets, showers, lockers and things.
“But in the future, there will be equal room given.”
Richard said the company is “very keen” to change perceptions around gender in the industry, and “make it as open as we possibly can”.
He expected that these changes would be the most visible difference at the site 20 years from now when the buildings, some built 80 years ago, are likely to look “pretty much the same”.
“We are upgrading all of the infrastructure for the team,” he said.
More news on Nestlé here: https://www.nestle.co.uk/en-gb
https://couriernews.co.uk/blog/nestle-boss-lifts-lid-on-logistics-investment/