Business Enquirer Issue 109 | SmartParc | Jan'23

For Food Parks the Future is Now

SmartParc

For Food Parks the Future is Now

SmartParc, the brainchild of businesswoman and leader in the food industry Jackie Wild, is quite simply, a no-brainer for the food manufacturing and processing sector.

PROJECT DIRECTED BY WRITTEN BY Lee Pheonix Laura Watling

SmartParc

SmartParc, the brainchild of businesswoman and leader in the food industry Jackie Wild, is quite simply, a no-brainer for the food manufacturing and processing sector.

When speaking with the passionate CEO, it comes as a surprise that such a unified and community driven approach to the sector hasn’t been taken before. But sometimes, it’s down to the right people, the right time and the right approach - a shoo-in, if you will.

With the first Park basedat a 155 acre site in Spondon, Derby, SmartParc is an exciting and innovative approach to reinventing traditional food parks.

Not only does it offer 2 million square feet of high quality food production and distribution space set to revolutionise the industry, the Park also offers green space for employees to enjoy, as well as a dedicated space for innovative SMEs to work with academic partners to grow their businesses.

“SmartParc presents a fresh opportunity for forward-thinking food businesses to grow in a more sustainable and collaborative way,” shared Jackie, “at the same time, it offers Derby the chance to regenerate its economy and boost the local community by creating 5000 new jobs”.

SmartParc offers a uniquely collaborative approach to its tenants. One of the methods it takes is offering shared services, therefore reducing both cost and carbon footprint.

The Park provides easy access to shared non-competitive services, including green energy, water, effluent and other utilities. This sharing model helps to reduce operating costs by around 20% and provides business optimisation through design.

In addition, there are plans for a shared logistics hub on site, which will further reduce

CEO, Jackie Wild

SmartParc

operating costs, food miles and open access to local and national markets.

“Knowledge sharing and nurturing talent within the industry is also a fundamental part of our mission,” explained Jackie. To fulfill this, a Food Manufacturing Innovation & Technology Centre will be built on the Park. This facility will provide a dedicated space for university research teams, ambitious food and drink SMEs and food training companies to collaborate and share ideas.

“With shared office and social spaces alongside food production facilities of varying sizes within the building, emerging food entrepreneurs can work closely with academics and more established producers, all in one place,” Jackie continued, “We believe this will give those harnessing new technologies, including cellular agriculture and vertical farming, both the space they need to grow, as well as a more secure route to market”.·

By effectively ‘spreading the load’, SmartParc is giving its tenants the opportunity to benefit from new technologies and knowledge that they may not have achieved independently. The first phase of SmartParc SEGRO Derby is already underway with anchor tenants HelloFresh moving into their new unit at the Park in April 2022.

This is just the beginning though, as the business anticipates that the Derby site will not only be successful, but will act as a blueprint for rolling out additional SmartParcs.

“We consider SmartParc SEGRO Derby to be the jewel in the crown, and it’s a great example of what can happen when the public and private sectors come together to level-up,” said Jackie, who praised the support of both national and local government when it came to transforming the former Celanese brownfield site in Spondon to what is now the very first SmartParc.

Jackie sees the opportunity to expand

HelloFresh’s food production unit at SmartParc SEGRO Derby

Bluseal

For the last 19 years Bluseal have consistently delivered quality door solutions along with unrivalled customer service across the commercial sector. What started with market-leading design of insulated doors has developed into a comprehensive range of specialist door solutions for a wide range of industries including automotive, food, pharmaceutical & general construction.

The Bluseal range includes insulated hinged, swing and sliding doors to suit temperature-controlled environments, without compromising on appearance. We have recently extended our industrial door offering to include the best quality high speed doors on the market along with sectional overhead doors and roller shutters.

We continue to invest in our fire rated door range and the Fireseal and Fireslam products can now be fitted directly onto

insulated panel, without the need for secondary support frames.

In recent years, Bluseal have become one of the leading suppliers of steel hinged doors in the UK. Our custom-made steel door solutions offer a wide range of products suitable for the Industrial and Commercial sectors. Security, acoustic and fire rated doors are all tested and fully certified for a variety of wall types and applications.

Bluseal have built a strong reputation for providing the very best in pre-sales and after-sales care. Whether it is a quick turnaround for an initial quotation or a speedy response to an emergency callout, we always strive to offer every client, large or small, the complete customer experience.

Our knowledgeable sales team are happy to advise you on the best door solution to suit your application.

www.bluseal.co.uk

QUALITY DOOR SOLUTIONS | THE SEAL OF APPROVAL

Bluseal supply and install a comprehensive range of door solutions for commercial buildings.

We specialise in high quality doors for temperature controlled environments and our products can also be applied to various applications across the construction industry.

We are renowned for our excellent customer service and high standard of workmanship and it is these qualities, coupled with our own in-house technical expertise, that has led to Bluseal products being favoured by architects, consultants and leading construction companies from around the UK and beyond.

BLUSEAL LIMITED Unit P, Blackpole East, Worcester, WR3 8SG

Why not visit our website for more information?

Bluseal have enjoyed working with TSL for the last 12 years and we wish them every success with the exciting, new SmartParc venture.

SmartParc’s footprint, with a further six parks in the UK in discussion, and opportunities in Ireland, mainland Europe, Canada and America. “In essence, SmartParc will be successful worldwide, but the approach will adapt to each region to ensure the optimum conditions for the tenants,” said Jackie. “By implementing SmartParcs across the globe, we will also enable communities to localise their food production,” something which the current climate crisis has shown is essential to the future of the planet.

As well as factors such as Covid, Brexit and the war in Ukraine pushing countries towards becoming more self-sufficient, environmental factors are also encouraging countries to consider more efficient food production. “The dramatic weather events we’ve witnessed recently, such as extreme flooding, have shown that we must disaggregate food production from the weather. SmartParc not only enables countries to internalise their food production but also offer more innovative, resilient

solutions” ,” explained Jackie. Jackie is committed to using the SmartParc concept to solve major food security issues in the developing world. “We are actively pursuing opportunities in some of these more challenging environments, and providing an efficient solution for those that need it is a key part of our aim,” she said.

With studies showing that up to 35% of greenhouse gas emissions are produced by the food industry, sustainability is also a key focus for SmartParc.

“The Park’s green energy platform delivers cost savings through a mixture of generating technologies,” shared Jackie. Measures which the Park are implementing include recycling the heat that’s produced by refrigeration plants and recirculating it to heat water and offices, as well as installing solar panels to every building.

Sustainability measures will develop over time to offer a solution to tenants’ pain points as well as being able to adapt as new technologies

SmartParc

come into play. SmartParc also recognises that different measures will also be more (or less) beneficial depending on where in the world the Park is located.

“SmartParc’s energy balancing delivery solution combines maximum future proofing of a system with the ability to connect future innovative technologies, all whilst delivering for those businesses across the food supply chain” explained Jackie.

“It is stimulating great interest from businesses looking to develop their corporate ESG/CSR agendas linked to Net Zero,” she continued.

In response to international demand, SmartParc is on a mission to support the food industry in feeding the world. Global awareness of the need for food industry change has increased rapidly in recent years. For example, the United Nations has highlighted food as a priority, organising a global Food Systems Summit in 2021 and more than 100 countries have set up national food dialogues and produced food development plans.

Exciting new food technologies are helping to drive this change as they emerge,, especially vertical farming. This process can produce

more than ten times the crop yield per acre compared to traditional agricultural methods, whilst using less water, no pesticides or herbicides and can be powered by renewable energy.

“Often, the problem with implementing new technologies is that they need space. SmartParc has the solution of space and adaptability. We are here, ready to support the industry in revolutionising food production,” said Jackie. A testament to all organisations working to bring SmartParc SEGRO Derby into existence (including SEGRO, TSL, CBRE, Derby City Council, D2N2 LEP, and Midlands Engine), the site launched two years to the day from Jackie’s first site walkabout.

“I’m proud to be working on this project with such an amazing team,” shared Jackie, “SmartParc has a great vision which is shared and supported by great people. There are easier things to do than revolutionise the food industry, but with a can-do attitude, the right skills and support from some fantastic businesses we are bringing it to realisation. We have one life and we shouldn’t look back and wish we’d done more. I encourage the food community to join us on this journey”.

www.smart-parc.com

Complete Loading Bay Solutions from Hörmann UK

With over 80 years’ experience in the manufacture of industrial doors and loading technology the Hörmann Group are the market leader in the supply of loading bay solutions for distribution centres and warehousing throughout the world.

Hörmann UK are pleased to have worked closely with the SmartParc project team to supply tailored thermally efficient loading bay systems, which comprised of dock levellers, industrial sectional doors and inflatable dock shelters.

Hörmann HTL-2 dock levellers together with SPU 67 Thermo industrial sectional doors have been supplied and fitted. The thermally efficient SPU 67 doors feature 67mm thick sections and a thermal break to further improve the insulation and sealing of the door, specified to help to

maintain the ambient temperature within the building. The sectional doors have also been fitted to close in front of the dock leveller and seal onto an insulated panel to further increase thermal insulation. The addition of tail lift flaps to the docks stops rubbish and debris collecting under the loading deck.

With thermal insulation being a key consideration, Hörmann supplied inflatable dock shelters which provide the optimal seal between internal and external environments. They are the ideal solution for cold storage warehousing and temperature critical installations, whilst providing a high level of operational flexibility as they are able to interface with a wide range of vehicle heights and widths.

For more information on Hörmann loading solutions and industrial doors please visit Industry, Commerce and Public Authorities | Hörmann (hormann. co.uk) or call 01530 516868

Brand quality for hall and industrial

construction ● Door and loading technology solutions for safe operations

● NEW: Dock leveller HTL2 ISO with up to 55 % better thermal insulation

● Round-the-clock service for inspection, maintenance and repair

516868 doorsales.lei@hormann.co.uk

SmartParc

Boreas Contracts Ltd.

The name to trust for insulated enclosures Our aim “To provide a constant solution to the ever-changing controlled environment industry”

Boreas Contracts Ltd, Specialist Internal Composite Wall and Ceiling Panel Installers. Our Senior Management Team; Managing Director, Office Manager, Contracts Manager, Head of Design, Senior Project Manager. Our Managing Director has worked as a service provider for Jackie/Michael/ TSL for over 15 years and more recently Smart Parc, both on the tools and within project management with other large subcontractors.

Feel privileged to be involved in such a prestigious project.

Here at Boreas Contracts, we pride ourselves in delivering a client specific solution, on a project-by-project basis. At the heart of our business, we believe in core principles that will play an important role in the successful delivery of the Smart Parc Units and any future projects such as,

•Ensuring all aspects of health and safety policies are adhered to.

•Attention to detail, second to none, no matter how big or small.

•Delivering projects to extremely tight programmes, maintaining high quality of workmanship throughout.

•Effective and precise communication with site teams, suppliers, and onsite delivery teams.

•Having in depth knowledge and experience in all aspects of ambient, chilled, and frozen white wall installations.

•Working with budgets giving cost certainty as far as practicably possible.

•Being fully aware of current and ongoing challenges faced within the construction industry and overcoming these with our selected and committed employees, suppliers, subcontractors, and site teams.

•Having recently successfully receiving our Irish VAT and EORI number we are now taking on and completing projects within Southern and Northern Ireland.

Proudly supporting SmartParc

SmartParc

www.smart-parc.com

info@busenq.com www.busenq.com