One of Europe’s largest new logistics development sites, West Midlands Interchange (WMI), the 734 acre strategic rail freight interchange (SRFI) at M6 Junction 12, has appointed Winvic Construction Ltd as its design stage delivery partner.

The £1bn project will offer over eight million square feet of commercial space, with state of the art units ranging from 200,000 to 1.2m sq ft, all supported by its own dedicated rail hub enabling multi-modal movement of goods around the UK. The pre-construction services agreement role is the first of four phases of the development programme, followed by early enabling works, infrastructure works and vertical unit delivery.

The site is one of a number of new SRFIs around the UK designed to enable occupiers to move increasing volumes of freight off roads and onto the rail network, with one rail freight carriage capable of replacing 44 to 72 HGVs, and generating up to 70% less carbon.

The site also boasts a range of other sustainability credentials, including providing 109 acres of country park to protect and promote biodiversity, and a wide range of renewable energy features, as well as providing 8,500 new jobs for the region during its development, construction and operation.

The project is being financed and delivered by Oxford Properties, the property arm of Canadian pension fund OMERS, in partnership with European developer Logistics Capital Partners (LCP), who are already working on a 15 acre scheme at Heathrow together. They acquired the WMI site in July 2021.

Andy Busby, UK construction director at LCP, commented: “We are pleased to welcome Winvic to the delivery team. They bring extensive experience of constructing large-scale complex logistics projects like this and demonstrated a clear understanding of the leading approach we want to take to sustainable design, cutting edge automation and lasting economic and social impact for the region.”

James Boadle, head of logistics and residential, Europe at Oxford Properties, said: It’s an important milestone for the project as we begin delivery in earnest, having spent Q3 and Q4 of 2021 preparing the site and building a collaborative approach with key partners including the local community, South Staffordshire District Council and Staffordshire County Council. With huge demand in the logistics market, we are keen to have a first offering ready in 2023.”

Winvic’s director of civils and infrastructure, Rob Cook, added: “We’re thrilled that Oxford Properties and LCP values Winvic’s sustainability credentials and experience in designing and constructing similar schemes, as well as our commitment to community and stakeholder collaboration. As the leading main contractor in the UK for delivering complex strategic rail freight interchange projects, we’re able to draw on our extensive project knowledge and assemble a skilful team to meet requirements, find innovative efficiencies and ultimately deliver the design stage output in a considered and forward-thinking way.”

For more information on the project visit www.westmidlandsinterchange.co.uk.