The trend towards multi-storey warehousing seems to be moving closer to home as the supply of land decreases and demand increases in London and the South East.
Segro's scheme in Paris shows that multi-storey warehousing is inevitable but needs to be viable from a cost perspective in order to work. The design of such a warehouse - good yard space and two storeys with a single (as opposed to a circular) ramp - is also critical from an operational perspective.
Proximity to local rail and road infrastructure is also important in ensuring that consumers' growing demand for ever shorter delivery times is met.
“Multi-storey has its place where occupiers don’t have a clear choice – so where land is in short supply and occupier demand is high. Occupiers have come round to the idea of multi-storey,” says Gulliford. “We conducted a focus group with occupiers on multi-storey and the number-one thing to come out of it was that the building has got to be as operationally effective and efficient as single-storey.”
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