Panattoni Europe delivers e-commerce logistics centre for Amazon - more than 161,500 sqm near Szczecin

Panattoni Europe, Poland’s leader in industrial real estate, has completed the construction of another e-commerce logistics centre for Amazon. The facility with total useful floor area of 161,500 sqm was erected in Kołbaskowo in the space of ten months and is one of the most advanced projects dedicated to online retail. More than 3,000 robots have been put in place to support the employees, using Amazon Robotics technology. The investment was developed to comply with the requirements of BREEAM environmental certification.

Panattoni Europe has just completed one of the most advanced fulfilment centres dedicated to online retail for Amazon. The investment with total useful floor area of 161,500 sqm was built on a 29-hectare site in Kołbaskowo near Szczecin. Warehousing and distribution functions have taken up close to 150,800 sqm, while more than 10,700 sqm are allocated to office and staff facilities. The facility is 17 metres high. Moreover, as part of the investment the developer has built 7,800 sqm of roads, including a dogbone roundabout. It has replaced the existing Kołbaskowo junction, at the exit off the A6 motorway coming from the east. The investment is Panattoni Europe’s fourth project for Amazon.

Robots and logistics process optimisation. The investment in Kołbaskowo is equipped with Amazon Robotics technology. For its purposes and to optimise logistics processes, the facility has 3 storeys. The ground level, which houses permanent workstations towards the rear of the building, has access to daylight thanks to the installation of 11 skylights measuring more than 100 sqm each. Daylight reaches the ground floor via walled tunnels which pass through two storeys, on which robots assist employees in stacking products on warehouse racks and in order picking.

Marek Dobrzycki, Managing Director, Panattoni Europe comments: “This investment is a prime example of the latest industry trends ─ the development of multi-storey warehouse spaces to be used by e-commerce businesses on a large scale. By going beyond the standard height, the space offered by the facility – now expressed in cubic metres – can be used in the optimal manner. With the inevitable growth of online shopping, such solutions are bound to become increasingly popular, and in the end will come as standard”.

The Amazon Robotics technology makes it possible to store up to 50% more products, and to process orders much faster. Thanks to process optimisation, it now takes not hours, but minutes to fill an individual order. It is worth adding that this technology has also led to a significant increase of employment. And as Marzena Więckowska, PR Senior Manager at Amazon comments: “Poland was one of the first countries in the world and the first in Europe to start working with Amazon Robotics back in 2015, when 270 robots made their way to the e-commerce logistics centre in Wrocław. Now our new centre in Kołbaskowo has more than 3,000 of them, which makes it one of the most advanced facilities in our network.”

BREEAM. Like in the case of previous facilities developed by Panattoni Europe for Amazon, this one too will undergo the BREEAM Interim certification process. The developer and the investor are looking to obtain the VERY GOOD rating. That is why, right from breaking ground the investment was executed in line with environmental requirements including: appropriate waste management in the course of construction and the use of a broad range of local plants to integrate the distribution centre with the natural environment. The facility features an intelligent building management system (BMS), LED lighting and motion sensors in various zones, enhanced insulation of walls and roofs, as well as building tightness. It also has installations limiting water consumption to the minimum.

Location. The facility for Amazon was developed in Kołbaskowo, approx. 12 km from Szczecin city centre and as little as 230 m from the Kołbaskowo Junction on the A6 motorway.