Panattoni Europe has built a record-breaking big box in Poland – 123,300 sqm at ground level for Leroy Merlin

Panattoni Europe, market leader in industrial real estate in Europe, has completed a warehouse facility which is a record-breaker in Poland in terms of size at ground level. It is the central warehouse of Leroy Merlin totalling in excess of 123,300 sqm. The project was delivered literally in the centre of Poland – in Piątek commune, Łódź voivodeship – and has completed the BREEAM environmental certification process.

No matter how far, time is of the essence. Panattoni Europe sets another record with the French home improvement hypermarket chain Leroy Merlin. This time, the developer has delivered the largest warehouse project in Poland – with 122,300 sqm at ground level! It is exactly six times the size of the Roman Colosseum, or the equivalent of 17 football pitches! The total area of the facility is equal to that of Warsaw’s Palace of Culture and Science – the tallest building in Poland, and it has sufficient capacity to fit nearly 14,500 truckloads. The warehouse section dedicated to multiple distribution channels, including online sales, amounts to nearly 121,000 sqm in total, while office and staff facilities have taken up 2400 sqm. The project was delivered in Central Poland, Łódź voivodeship, Piątek commune – the geographical centre of Poland. Kajima Europe acted as the general contractor.

For Leroy Merlin the new project is closely related to the company’s development plans and the transformation of its supply chain. According to Krzysztof Niciejewski, Senior Manager for Central Logistics, Leroy Merlin Polska: “Opening of the warehouse in Piątek was a considerable operational challenge for us, because at the same time as moving our stocks, we were also fulfilling orders from our existing warehouses in Stryków. Consolidation of our distribution processes enables us to develop the range of services offered to customers. Apart from supplying our stores, the new warehouse in Piątek handles the e-commerce business and deliveries directly from the warehouse to the customer. A one-stop shop warehouse solution gives us greater flexibility in managing the warehouse and stocks offered at our stores. Development of central logistics is a must in today’s market and Leroy Merlin Polska understands it perfectly. And this is not our last word on the matter”. He then goes on to add: “We have collaborated with Panattoni Europe on earlier projects. Thanks to our track record, Panattoni understands our needs and operating principles, which has helped us complete the investment in Piątek on time and to standard.”

This is the third development by Panattoni Europe for Leroy Merlin. The first two were built in Stryków, and one of them, the 56,000-square-metre facility from 2008, was a record in its time. The most recent project is another record-breaker – apart from the gigantic space at ground level, the site also features a 10,000-square-metre roofed enclosure for keeping goods which do not require indoor storage, and a car park for 25 trucks and 150 cars. The warehouse itself has 132 docks and 6 ground-level drive-in gates. It also complies with green building requirements – it has undergone the BREEAM environmental certification process, and so it includes features like innovative LED lighting system or enhanced daylighting inside the building.

Marek Dobrzycki, Managing Director, Panattoni Europe comments: “Breaking records with our clients is our specialty, not only in terms of size but also completion time. The latter would be impossible without the right team and choice of partners to finalise the project with, and for that I am thankful to all”, adding: “our top objective is to support our customers at every stage of their business operations, and the contracts signed with Leroy Merlin are the best example. Over the past decade, the company has tasked us with developing three of their logistics centres. This testifies not only to our superior flexibility in operations, but also to the trust and satisfaction of decision-makers who left it to us to deliver some of the most critical points of the development strategy of their own business”.

BTS Leroy Merlin occupies a strategic location, in Łódź voivodeship, Piątek municipality, as little as 2.5 km from the “Piątek” junction on the A1 – Stryków, and 30 km from the intersection of the A1 and A2 motorways. With such a location, the tenant will enjoy easy access in all four directions – north, south, east and west.