Swedish furniture retailer IKEA has opened its first distribution center in Ireland as part of its continued expansion in the country.
The state-of-the-art distribution center in Rathcoole, County Dublin, will result in reduced delivery times for customers as items no longer have to be dispatched from the UK. The new multimillion-euro facility will cut delivery to three days and will also improve product availability throughout Ireland, according to IKEA.
“The opening of Ireland’s first IKEA distribution center will greatly benefit our customers through faster and more reliable deliveries,” confirmed Jakob Bertilsson, country customer fulfilment manager, IKEA Ireland and UK. “It marks a key step in our ambitious expansion plans across Ireland. We remain committed to – and are continually investing in – the future of our physical store in Dublin, but we want people to enjoy the IKEA experience no matter where they choose to engage with us, whether through our full-size store, plan and order points or online. This new distribution center will greatly enable this, by increasing availability of our products and reducing lead times.”
The 27,000m2 distribution center has a storage capacity of 20,000m3 and can house up to 9,000 different product lines.
IKEA expects the distribution center to be making more than 300,000 deliveries in the first year of operation, with that figure almost doubling to nearly 600,000 within five years. Eventually the plan is to be able to deliver up to three million items a year from the center.
Sustainable operations
According to Minister of State for Business, Employment and Retail Emer Higgins TD, the facility is one of the most energy efficient logistics facilities in Ireland and will support IKEA’s transition to 100% zero emission deliveries by August 2025: “There is no doubt IKEA’s dedication to become climate positive sets a commendable standard for the entire retail industry.”
The distribution center features rainwater harvesting and roof-based solar panels and is powered by 100% renewable energy from IKEA’s 8MW wind farm near Manorhamilton, County Leitrim.
Zero-emission deliveries
IKEA is also transitioning to exclusive zero-emission home deliveries, which together with locating the distribution center closer to its customers, will result in significant reduction in CO2 emissions and more sustainable deliveries.
Customers with Dublin Eircodes will receive their home deliveries in zero-emission vehicles, with 17 currently in operation. This is expected to double by August 2025.
The company has also established an extensive electric vehicle charging network at the distribution center, comprising three rapid charge points for quick top-ups and 20 overnight charging points for full recharges.
Furthermore, to secure even more renewable energy for the future, Ingka Investments, the investment arm of the company, has invested in a 10GW offshore wind project portfolio in Ireland and UK.
“The opening of this new distribution center not only demonstrates IKEA’s desire to become more accessible to our customers in Ireland, but also our commitment to sustainability and innovation,” said Marsha Smith, deputy CEO of IKEA Ireland and UK. “IKEA is committed to the Paris Agreement and to helping limit the global temperature rise to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. By transitioning to zero-emission deliveries and having an energy efficient distribution center, we are playing our part in protecting the planet and taking another significant step in our journey to becoming a climate positive business.”