Ocado to begin commissioning work on new facility in Dordon
ONLINE supermarket and delivery group Ocado has said development of its massive new distribution centre in Warwickshire is progressing to plan.
In a trading update ahead of the group’s AGM, it said testing and commissioning work at the Birch Coppice centre in Dordon would take place during the summer with a view to the facility becoming operational in the first quarter of next year.
Generally, the board said the firm, which distributes goods for Waitrose, had continued to see sales growth during the first part of the year with demand increasing for online grocery shopping.
Operational performance at its Hatfield customer fulfilment centre (CFC) – which is the model for the Dordon operation – continued to improve and the group said it was now operating at record levels of capacity.
It said a number of new enhancements had gone live in both Q1 and Q2 which would enable the firm to continue expanding capacity. This will allow it to significantly extend its range of goods and improve operational efficiency.
“The board is encouraged by the progress of the business so far this year. Growth in sales has increased, and it is expected that year on year gross sales growth will be approximately 13% for Q2 (the 12 weeks ending May13),” said the statement.
