Roads Minister opens logistics depot

Mr Kennedy officially unveiled the logistics company’s new Northern Ireland depot at Mallusk Drive on Friday, July 27.

The new 33,000 square foot facility has state-of-the-art warehousing, a 20 ton overhead crane for heavy lifts and new modern office space.

Mr Kennedy officially opened the new depot at a ceremony which was also attended by Finance Minister Sammy Wilson, Justice Minister David Ford and members of the business community.

Customers will be able to tap into Redhead’s well established UK and Europe-wide logistics infrastructure. It is 21 years since the company first invested in Northern Ireland by opening an office in Carrickfergus.

Redhead International’s Director of Ireland and Scotland, Mark Cosgrove said: “Whilst we have had this type of capability in Great Britain and Dublin for many years, the new Mallusk depot will now allow us to offer customers in Northern Ireland a full package of managed logistics services, including third party office space, warehousing and order fulfilment.”

He added: “This exciting development represents a major seven figure investment in the company’s Northern Ireland infrastructure by Redhead’s board.

“The facility will be a valuable resource not only to the company, as we continue to develop our presence in Northern Ireland, but also, and more importantly, to local business that may be looking to grow their export markets - a strategy that is in line with the government’s focus on developing export-led economic growth.”

Redhead International, established in 1978, employs over 200 people at depots in Bradford, Burton-on-Trent, Basildon, Bathgate, Bristol and Dublin as well as the new depot in Mallusk.

The company has regular scheduled services, many of them daily, to over 40 countries in western, eastern and southern Europe, Scandinavia, north Africa, the Middle East and the CIS countries and has a turnover of more than £31 million a year.