IN Brief:
- Cadent has taken a ten-year lease on the DC4 unit at Prologis Park Bromford Gate in north Birmingham.
- The approximately 80,000 sq ft property includes 68,352 sq ft of warehousing, six loading docks, two level access doors, and a 50m yard.
- The facility is adjacent to Cadent’s existing National Distribution Centre; fit-out work is in progress and operations are planned for early 2027.
Cadent has leased a warehouse beside its existing National Distribution Centre in Birmingham as part of a consolidation of local logistics operations. The gas distribution network operator has signed a ten-year agreement for DC4 at Prologis Park Bromford Gate in Erdington, with fit-out work under way before planned occupation in early 2027.
The unit is described as approximately 80,000 sq ft, with a more precise reported gross floor area of 79,586 sq ft. Of that, 68,352 sq ft is warehouse accommodation and 11,234 sq ft is office space over two storeys. The building has nine-metre eaves, six dock-level loading doors and two level access doors served by a 50-metre yard.
The new premises stand alongside Cadent’s existing National Distribution Centre, allowing the utility to bring more of its Birmingham logistics activity onto one estate. Cadent is consolidating local operations, with the fit-out determining how the two buildings divide receiving, storage and distribution work. The adjacency also puts both sites within the same established road and property infrastructure.
Cadent operates an extensive gas distribution network across the North West, the East and West Midlands, the East of England and London. Its responsibilities span approximately 82,000 miles of pipelines, creating a substantial requirement for materials, equipment and replacement components to be made available to engineering and maintenance teams.
Gas network maintenance requires a steady flow of components, tools and equipment to teams working across a wide geographical area. A distribution centre serving that function may have to receive mixed consignments, hold bulky items safely and make smaller components available for planned and urgent work. The combination of warehouse accommodation and vehicle access at DC4 provides room to configure those activities as Cadent completes its operating plan.
The DC4 loading arrangement gives the operator two forms of vehicle access. Dock-level doors enable compatible goods vehicles to load or unload against a raised warehouse floor, while level access doors can accommodate movements that require entry from the yard at ground level. How these are used will be determined by the equipment, vehicles and handling practices adopted after fit-out.
The 50-metre yard provides the approach and manoeuvring area for those doors. Vehicles must be able to reverse or turn without obstructing other movements, and the final traffic plan will allocate room for waiting, loading and pedestrian access. In a busy distribution operation, door allocation and yard circulation can be as important to vehicle turnaround as the number of loading bays.
Nine-metre eaves also give Cadent options for the vertical arrangement of stored goods. Rack height, lifting equipment and fire protection clearances influence how much of that height can be put to work, while heavier or irregular products may need floor positions rather than high-level storage. The available building dimensions are established; Cadent’s eventual layout and storage system will be developed through the fit-out.
Prologis and Cadent agreed the transaction in time to give the incoming occupier early access for its fit-out. The industrial property had originally been marketed for availability during the first quarter of 2027 following a refurbishment programme. Cadent’s occupation timetable will now depend on completion and commissioning of its own works within the premises.
Cadent expects the move to create approximately 100 jobs in Birmingham as its local operations expand. Recruitment and training will run alongside the building programme, which the company wants to complete in time to begin operations in early 2027. The new employment is a planned consequence of the investment, with staff numbers to be realised as the facility starts operating.
The agreement also completes the letting of Prologis Park Bromford Gate, where the DC4 transaction leaves no remaining vacant unit. The landlord secured the lease through the joint agency team of Darby Keye, Harris Lamb and Colliers, while Cadent was advised by Avison Young.
A ten-year lease secures additional space beside the existing distribution centre without requiring Cadent to establish a separate Birmingham location. Material transfers, vehicle dispatch and local management can consequently be arranged across neighbouring buildings. The specific operational gains will depend on where goods are held and how the sites share stock records and transport movements.
Grouping the additional warehouse space beside Cadent’s existing facility gives the operator the option of coordinating inbound deliveries and onward distribution across the same estate. The practical result will depend on assigning goods to the correct building and keeping inventory records aligned when parts move between sites. Access via the M6 and the established National Distribution Centre provide the geographical basis for that consolidation.
The next milestone is completion of the DC4 fit-out and the planned start of operations in early 2027. Cadent has secured a refurbished building with six loading docks, two ground-level access doors and a 50-metre yard, giving the utility additional space to reorganise its Birmingham logistics operations.
