The new facility stands on the existing CHEP site and delivers increased availability for the growing pallet demand from customers in the South-East region.
The firm has invested more than £2 million in equipping the facility with some of the most advanced automatic fault-detection and repair equipment available.
It says that the new automation equipment will deliver significant efficiency and productivity improvements, while enabling a higher level of consistency in pallet quality with the added benefit of improved levels of platform consistency and appearance for all customers.
Explains CHEP UK & Ireland vice-president and country general manager Helen Lane: “The key areas where the automation will deliver these productivity and efficiency improvements are inspection, repair and paint stencilling.
“Customers will benefit from improved levels of platform consistency delivered by this increased automation and reduced manual intervention required in the conventional inspect and repair process.
“Additionally, the South Ockendon site is in the ideal location to effectively manage the large number of satellite pallet processing operations installed for customers on their sites in the South of England.”
It is expected that the new facility will be 50% more productive than previously, as a result of this automation, with the ability to process approximately 6.2 million pallets per year, compared with 4.1 million pallets at the original facility.
Staffing at the new facility will remain the same as previously with approximately 85 full-time employees. The new service centre also incorporates advanced sustainable solutions such as rain water harvesting for the pallet washing area, the installation of LED lighting and improvements in waste segregation.
