Wincanton building for the future in Thames Gateway London
Wincanton Records Management, provides a full data and records management service for over 1,000 major companies in the UK and Ireland. It operates from 'Records Centres', storing a wide range of documents, files, tapes and archives for clients, which include leading financial and legal institutions. Since companies started to recognise the benefits of outsourcing the storage of their documents in terms of cost and space, Wincanton Records Management has been at the forefront of the records management industry and continues to be one of the leaders in the field.
Wincanton Records Management is a growing part of Wincanton plc, Europe logistics group which employs around 28,000 people and has an annual turnover of over £1.8bn. It includes the Irish market leader in Dublin as well as the facilities in London, which until recently, were operating under the name of 'House of Hill'.
As Wincanton Records Management expanded, its original sites in Bromley-by-Bow and Barking were no longer able to provide an effective business solution. The business was therefore looking to partially relocate and consolidate its operations into a state of the art site which would allow for a more efficient and effective operation. It also needed to remain close to current and potential customers based in the City and Canary Wharf.
Thames Gateway London offered the solution:
- The area is close to the key client markets for Wincanton Records Management
- This proximity would improve response times to client's needs for urgent deliveries of stored material
- Relocating the functions from smaller facilities already based in the area would ensure that the knowledge and expertise of the existing team would not be lost
Gateway to London's Role
Wincanton Records Management approached Gateway to London (GTL) in August 2003. The business was looking for a new facility that would help provide a solution for its future growth and asked GTL to present a range of options to the company.
Having embarked upon this process it became apparent to GTL that Wincanton Records Management would need to build a new premises to take into account all of its requirements, rather than take an existing building. GTL then produced a shortlist of possible development sites on behalf of Wincanton Records Management and worked with the management team to reduce the list to two viable sites, Beam Reach Site 8 (the flagship LDA development in Ferry Lane, Rainham) and another that was privately owned.
At the same time GTL put Wincanton Records Management in contact with the relevant developers, agents and local planners that the company would need to establish relationships with to move their project forward.
Wincanton Records Management felt the Beam Reach site was ideal and with GTL's help embarked upon the process of gaining approval from the LDA and planning authority for the company to occupy the site.
GtL provided advice on a range of issues including how to demonstrate their need to be in the area - they were able to do this through demonstrating the large proportion of their client base that is located at Canary Wharf.
The outline planning application for the site at Beam Reach allowed for 20-25% distribution allowance. Wincanton Records Management's operation would have taken up most of this allowance, and as this was a concern for the landowners, the LDA, and GTL identified a mutual solution to ensure the project could go ahead. Working alongside the company and their advisors, GTL successfully negotiated the separation of the Wincanton Records Management scheme from the overall planning application for the 30-acre site at Beam Reach.
This meant that the company's 80,000 sq ft/3 acre site (with a further option on an additional 2-2.5 acres) would be considered as a separate application from the remainder of the site. As Wincanton Records Management's application was solely for storage and distribution, there was also no requirement for an Environmental Impact Assessment, securing significant time savings. As a result, the company has reduced costs and the site remains an attractive proposition for other occupiers, leaving the original distribution allowance in tact.
Agreement was reached and the application passed quickly through the planning process, with Wincanton Records Management receiving planning permission in January 2005 and development of the new facility starting on site in February 2005.
The Company View
Eddie Ingram, Managing Director of Wincanton Records Management, London
'Wincanton Records Management is a fast growing business and this new development is driven by our requirements for greater capacity.
GTL are well connected and have been extremely useful to us because of their close links with the stakeholders in the local area and the accurate and detailed intelligence that they provide. They have helped us to cut through the red tape that we have come across and have been an invaluable source of information and advice since we started working with them three years ago. In moving to Beam Reach we have secured the future for our business and the jobs of the 60 local people that we employ. It also means that we are close to our customers and therefore able to supply them with a better and faster service.'
Outcomes
Wincanton Records Management's move to Beam Reach will see 55 new jobs created by 2008, doubling the current staff and allowing for impressive company growth.
Its newly built records centre is now complete, the company has moved in and the site is fully operational.
GTL continues to work closely with Wincanton, which is the first to move onto Beam Reach Site 8.
The River Road site in Barking is still operational, providing a dual storage solution to customers who do not wish to store all their records in one location.
As the number of potential clients located in Canary Wharf and the surrounding area continues to grow, so too will the opportunities for the company and local business communities.
