PM says good logistics infrastructure needed
The prime minister John Key says good logistics infrastructure is needed if New Zealand wishes to enjoy more economic growth.
Speaking at the official opening of the newest Cardinal Logistics warehousing and distribution centre in South Auckland, Key says the New Zealand economy is growing at about 4% a year and he feels it is starting to crank up.
Key cites Bank Indexes such as the ANZ Truckometer which measures truck movements as a positive barometer of the economy.
According to Key the logistics industry is busy supporting exports to China which is worth more than $10 billion a year to the New Zealand economy. In January 2014 alone, New Zealand exported more than $1.2 billion worth of goods to China according to Statistics New Zealand.
The bulk of the new logistics site opened by the prime minister will be allocated to stock from Cardinal’s major client, food manufacturer Griffins Foods which exports more than $123 million of product to more than 23 countries annually. Red Bull and Nuplex Foods also share space within the new logistics and distribution centre.
According to Cardinal Logistics manager Tony Gorton, the new 27,000 square metre site covers the same amount of land as five rugby fields, it is an expansion site which joins two existing facilities near Auckland airport.
The warehouse is 21,000 square metres in size, with 6000 square metres of canopy, as well as 1000 square metres of office space. Planning the site took around six months, and the build was completed in nine months by commercial construction specialists Haydn and Rollett.
According to Gorton the new facility has the capacity to contain 37,000 pallets, process more than 4000 containers annually, a turnover of more than 250,000 pallets.
Gorton founded Cardinal as third party logistics supplier in 1992, specialising in the distribution of grocery and fast moving consumer goods (FMCG), and he says the company remains 100% New Zealand owned and operated.
