A regional pallet distribution hub designed to reduce its carbon footprint and driver stem mileage and fast-track deliveries into the South East is celebrating its 10^th year of successful operation.

Pallet-Track’s Southern Hub in Welwyn Garden City was set up and designed to save over 500,000 extra miles of transport, per year, for shipments heading into the capital and surrounding areas.

The 100,000ft² hub enables us to speed up freight movements in and around the Greater London area to reduce pressure on our central Midlands hub.

Located near the A1/M1 corridor, the hub is operated by network shareholder member P W Gates Distribution and proved so successful it led to our creation of a sister Northern Hub, near Wigan, in 2017.

Vehicle for growth

Stuart Godman, CEO at Pallet-Track, said: “When the Southern Hub opened its doors a decade ago, we calculated that shareholder members using it to ship directly to the South East would save a collective half a million miles from their annual journeys.

“Not only did this significantly reduce our carbon footprint and improve operational efficiency, but it also gave Pallet-Track a significant vehicle for our growth ambitions.

“The effectiveness of the Southern Hub was proved so quickly that our sister Northern Hub opened three years later, mirroring the service in the north of the country.

“Bringing things right up to date, the Southern Hub remains a key part of our network infrastructure as we continue to drive industry leading year-on-year growth, while underpinning our commitment towards being a carbon certified business.”

Upward trajectory

Peter Gates, managing director of P W Gates, said: “It was clear from the outset there was the demand for the Southern Hub, with more than 500 pallets being moved on the first night from a standing start.

“It’s been on an upward trajectory ever since, rising to an average of 2,200 now and occasionally peaking at more than 2,500 pallets per night.

“The hub has delivered on its key aims of increasing capacity, boosting the Pallet-Track footprint nationwide, creating 25 local jobs and assisting the participating members to improve productivity.

“We’re looking forward to seeing what the next 10 years will bring.”

Chris Lynch, development director of P W Gates, said: “It was tremendous amount of work to get the Southern Hub set up 10 years ago. On paper we had an empty shed, and it didn’t look like it could work. The P W Gates team threw some ideas into the pot and produced a solution that worked for all of us.

“We are now operating with 32 depots and handling more than 100 double-deckers a night, which has increased capacity back at the central hub and has meant enormous growth to both of our businesses.”