Woolworths customers will see better in-store availability and faster arrival of new products with the opening of its new Regional Distribution Centre (RDC) in Western Sydney.
The Sydney RDC completes Woolworths’ Moorebank Logistics Precinct, which also houses its recently opened National Distribution Centre (NDC). Together, the two facilities will move over 5 million cartons per week to supermarkets, covering 20,000 individual products.
The $1.3 billion precinct has direct links to Port Botany, interstate rail and Sydney’s M5 and M7 motorways. The two distribution centres will also remove 26,000 truck movements from Australian roads each year.
The automated centres will move food, grocery and everyday items onto shelves faster, with pallets delivered ‘aisle-ready’ for each store, enabling quicker restocking by teams. Covering 75,000 square metres of floor space, the centres are around five times the size of the Sydney Cricket Ground.
The precinct has created more than 1,300 construction jobs and will employ around 800 people in operational roles across the two centres.
The facilities were officially opened by the minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, Catherine King, Woolworths Group CEO Amanda Bardwell and Woolworths Group chair Scott Perkins.
“This investment is about more than just infrastructure; it is critical for our customers, our team and our future capability,” said Bardwell.
“Our customers will benefit from better product availability and convenience, particularly in the run up to the busy Christmas season. We know they want to be able to come in store and find what they need quickly and easily.
“These new facilities are a game-changer, putting products in stores more efficiently and seamlessly. From weekly specials to festive favourites, we know we have to have it on shelves or online when customers want it.
“Behind the scenes, this investment delivers a more resilient supply chain, while the automation also significantly reduces heavy manual handling, which makes a real difference to our team members every single day.”
Both centres have achieved a 5-star Green Star rating from the Green Building Council of Australia. They feature solar panels generating 5.3 megawatts of energy annually, equivalent to the energy use of 880 households, and include rainwater harvesting systems.