The construction of HEMA's new distribution centre in Nieuwegein has officially started. The 34,000-square-metre hall will stock a significant part of the range from summer 2020. In addition, HEMA will supply the growing number of shops abroad from this location. HEMA rents the building from Prologis and engages CEVA Logistics to carry out the logistics.
The current retail DC on the Lage Weide industrial estate - a short distance from Utrecht - is reaching the limits of its storage and order processing capacity. The available space is too small for the growing assortment. Staff already work in two shifts with extended working hours as standard, while at busy times work is also carried out at night.
"When the new DC is ready, we will distribute the range across both locations. In the highly mechanised DC on Lage Weide, the focus will be on slow-movers and small items that fit in the plastic bins of the mechanised system. In Nieuwegein, we will stock the perishable food products, non-food products such as clothing and the larger items," says Ton Broeren, head of logistics at HEMA.
Shuttle transport
Splitting the assortment will lead to a lot of shuttle transport between the two DCs. How much Broeren cannot say at the moment. That partly depends on HEMA's ambitious growth plans. Last year, HEMA opened a shop in Dubai, its first shop outside Europe. Besides Europe and Asia, the sights are now set on a third continent. Because of the growth plans, it is currently unknown what volumes we can expect here soon. Partly for this reason, we are going to design the new DC conventionally and therefore flexibly", says Broeren.
HEMA now has 762 shops, 117 of which are outside the Benelux. Stocks in those international shops will soon be replenished from Nieuwegein. "The items required for this from the DC at Lage Weide will be delivered via cross-docking. The reverse process applies to the shops in the Benelux. We continue to supply those shops from Lage Weide. Once again, the articles from Nieuwegein are delivered via crossdocking," explains Broeren, who has a simple explanation for this distribution. "It allows us to organise transport more efficiently. That way, the trucks that shuttle between the two DCs hardly ever have to drive empty."
CEVA Logistics
HEMA is renting the building from Prologis and will take care of the interior, but has outsourced the execution of the operation - unlike at Lage Weide - to a logistics service provider: CEVA Logistics. "We know quite a bit about logistics, but Ceva Logistics does nothing but this. We can benefit from CEVA's international knowledge and experience. They can facilitate our growth plans."
Engaging CEVA Logistics also means that this logistics provider will be responsible for the recruitment and selection of personnel. "Logistics staff are hard to come by these days. CEVA has a large pool of people, which makes scaling up and down a lot easier," states Broeren.
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Sustainable
Before the first pile was driven into the ground under great attention, Sander Breugelmans of real estate specialist Prologis told some more about the building. In designing it, extra attention was paid to creating pleasant working conditions for Ceva employees. On the roof will be 5,700 solar panels, enough to power 600 households. Only LED lights will be installed under the roof. This will soon earn the building the sustainability label BREAAM Very Good.
"An energy-neutral DC? Energy surplus you will mean. We will soon produce three times as much energy as we need ourselves," jokes Tjeerd Jegen, ceo of HEMA. He can't wait for the new DC to be ready for use. "We are growing fast, so we would like to start as soon as possible. We can't wait to start delivering our beautiful products to shops from all over the world from here."
From left to right: Arthur van Kooij (head of project management Prologis Northern Europe), Bart Beeks (managing director, CEVA Logistics Benelux), Ellie Eggengoor (alderman for economic affairs municipality of Nieuwegein), Tjeerd Jegen (ceo HEMA), Sander Breugelmans (country manager Prologis Benelux). Photo by: Bas de Meijer.
Author: Marcel te Lindert
