Business park operator starts work on new, speculative unit

Potter Space, which owns and operates five business parks across the UK, has begun work on a speculative 17,445 sq ft industrial unit on its Ripon site.

The building of Unit 53 is in response to the increased demand for industrial units of this size, with its construction brought forward following the early pre-let of Unit 24, a 4,000 sq ft unit, completed in July and now occupied by Recycled Asphalt Products.

The new unit will follow a similar build strategy and specification to Unit 52, Potter Space’s first carbon neutral building, which was recognised with an International Green Apple Award for its environmental features, including EV charging.

In addition, the welfare of those operating from the unit will be catered for by the creation of an attractive outdoor environment, such as picnic areas, to mirror similar facilities around the business park.

Jenna Strover, head of commercial delivery at Potter Space, will again be working closely with the company’s construction manager, John Royle, to oversee the build which is due to be completed in spring 2022.

Strover said: “These are exciting times for the company, as we continue to invest and expand to meet the growing regional demand for industrial premises.

“We have certainly been encouraged by the amount of interest shown in our previous speculative builds, all of which were let well before completion.

“By having our own construction team, led by John, means we have been able to accelerate the build programme buoyed up by the high level of demand we are experiencing from a variety of different industries for modern, environmentally friendly industrial units, in strategic locations, and with excellent transport links.

“The appeal of our Ripon business park is demonstrated by the diversity of our customers on site including those operating in animal feeds, tile distribution, logistics, and engineering.

“With the addition of Droitwich, Ely, Selby and Knowsley, our customers occupy around 1.6 million sq ft across 250 acres, so we have plenty of scope to build units for a variety of businesses.”

Fox Lloyd Jones and Gent Visick have been appointed joint property agents for the unit.

Working alongside the in-house team as consultants are; architects, mechanical and electrical engineers, WPL Consulting; designers and health & safety specialists, AAP; and structural engineers RWO.