Coles has opened its second automated distribution centre in Western Sydney as part of a $1 billion investment in technology and innovation.
Located in Kemps Creek, about 40km west of the Sydney CBD, the centre was designed to provide better availability for customers and create safer, more efficient outcomes for team members and suppliers.
Once fully operational, the 187,000sq facility will service 229 NSW and ACT stores. It will be able to process more than four million cartons per week, equivalent to 32 million products sold in stores.
According to Coles CEO Leah Weckert, the site will help eliminate around 16 million kilograms of manual handling every week.
In addition, the centre is fitted with a 3.5-megawatt solar solution on the roof as the group aims to be powered by 100 per cent renewable energy by the end of FY25.
This marks Coles’ second automated distribution centre, with the first opened in Redbank, Queensland in May last year. The Queensland facility has processed more than 140 million cartons, with customers seeing a 20 per cent improvement in availability compared to other stores.
The sites form the two parts of a $1 billion-plus investment in technology-led innovation for a more efficient, sustainable, and safer supply chain.
The two sites will handle double the volume of a standard site but at two-thirds of the operating costs. They will also replace five of Coles’ distribution centres.
Further, Coles is investing around $400 million across two online customer fulfilment centres, one in Wetherill Park, NSW and the other in Truganina, Victoria.
