Hornbach Baumarkt AG invests Euro 25 million in a further location close to Dreihof Roundabout / New logistics center for lengthy and bulky goods to launch operations in spring 2023 / Job application phase initiated
Bornheim, March 1, 2022. Hornbach Baumarkt AG today broke the ground for its second logistics center in Essingen. The ceremony was held in the presence of District Administrator Dietmar Seefeldt, Municipal Mayor Axel Wassyl, Local Mayor Susanne Volz, representatives of the general contractor Goldbeck GmbH and the planning engineers, as well as Chief Logistics Officer Ingo Leiner and other Hornbach employees. The long-established and family-run company, which has its headquarters in the neighboring municipality of Bornheim, is investing around Euro 25 million in the new building close to Dreihof Roundabout. Construction is due for completion in early 2023, with operations then being launched in the spring. The job application phase is already underway.
With a surface area of more than 60,000 square meters, the site is located in the street “In der Windblase” and directly opposite the first Hornbach logistics center opened in 1999. Excavation and drainage work began in November and is now largely complete. Around 4,500 cubic meters of topsoil have been removed and deposited on a neighboring piece of land, where it is ready for use on green spaces at a later point in time. “We even finished the preliminary work slightly early than originally planned and can now get going with the actual construction”, explains Rainer Pillin, the manager responsible for the project at Hornbach Baumarkt AG. “Today’s groundbreaking ceremony is the starting signal for us to speedily implement our project. We aim to complete construction work by the beginning of 2023 so that the new logistics center can launch operations next spring.” District Administrator Dietmar Seefeldt is enthusiastic about the ambitious timescale and explains at the ceremony: “This is great news for the Südliche Weinstrasse District. With this additional logistics center, Hornbach is not only building a national and international hub for its merchandise here in our region, but also creating further jobs for people throughout the Southern Palatinate region.”
Construction work due to start in next few days
A total of 20 large pillars with prefabricated foundations will be embedded in the ground each day in April and, once this step is complete, the new building will gradually start to take shape. Two large covered halls are to be built on a surface of 23,000 square meters. In July 2021, Hornbach managed to attract Goldbeck GmbH, a well-known specialist for large commercial construction projects, as the general contractor for the project. This construction company and service provider is building the logistics center based on a systematic approach. Major components are being industrially prefabricated, then delivered to the construction site and assembled there. At the groundbreaking ceremony, Dominik Stumpf, Director of Goldbeck’s Rhine-Neckar Office, stressed: “Our systematic construction method will enable us to hand over the logistics center in turnkey condition in a comparatively short period. It also significantly reduces our carbon footprint.”
Essingen set to become the Group’s largest logistics location
As well as a regional warehouse, the new logistics center will include a cross-docking center for lengthy and bulky goods. Thanks to doorways that are six-and-a-half meters wide and ground-level loading and unloading facilities, this will enable particularly bulky items, such as worktops of up to five meters in length, to be delivered, cross-docked, and sent on to 45 Hornbach DIY stores and garden centers in Germany, Luxembourg, and Switzerland. To date, all items too large for customary euro pallets have been processed at an external logistics site in Lorsch. As that location does not meet the requirements for permanent operations, the company last year decided to build the new site in Essingen. Many of the employees at Lorsch are expected to switch to Essingen. “We have also hired the first new staff already, including three trainees. Further positions are set to be filled in the weeks and months ahead. That way, we can start initial training at an early stage and be ready to go next spring”, explains Jürgen Krones, Project Director Logistics at Hornbach Baumarkt AG. “Operating the center under our own steam – at a site that is absolutely fit for purpose and with a well-prepared team – will enable us to optimally meet all quality standards. In terms of its total surface, Essingen will now be our company’s largest logistics location.”
Hall roofs covered in greenery and equipped with photovoltaics systems
The roof of the cross-docking center will be covered in greenery, offering a habitat to insects and birds, while the 6,000 square meter roof on the adjacent regional warehouse will be equipped with a large photovoltaics system. The electricity generated here should cover most of the energy requirements at the new logistics center. Based on suggestions made by an ecological surveyor, Hornbach has planned numerous further measures that will gradually be implemented as building work progresses. To the north of the future halls, along Hornbachstrasse, an ecological habitat will be created with drainage ditches, trees, and plants offering a habitat to birds and insects. The green space around the building will be irrigated with rainwater collected in cisterns. In line with surveyor’s recommendations, all outdoor lighting will be implemented in such a way as to limit the impact on insects and birds. Charging points for electric vehicles will also be installed in the forecourt.
Download Photos: Media Center
