ABP King’s Lynn successfully handles its first shipment of granite

Associated British Ports’s Port of King’s Lynn welcomed its first ever shipment of granite in July. The cargo, received on behalf of Witherley Services, was safely and swiftly discharged to quay, enabling the first deliveries to reach local customers on the same day.

Witherley Services, based in Kettering, is part of the construction company, Aggregate Industries, which chose ABP King’s Lynn to meet its existing local customer demand and expand future sales in the area. The 3,542 metric tonnes of granite came from Aggregate Industries’ flagship super quarry, Glensanda in Scotland, the largest granite quarry in Europe. Granite stone is often used in buildings, bridges, paving, monuments, countertops, tile floors, stair treads and many other design elements of construction.

Kim Kennedy, ABP’s Port Manager for King’s Lynn, Associated British Ports, said, “We’re proud of our team at our port of King’s Lynn for successfully handling this first shipment of granite. Aggregate Industries has been a customer for a long time, but this was the first contract with Witherley Services and with our highly skilled workforce and development land offering expansion, we hope that this will mean that more granite shipments will follow in the future.”

Chris Walton, Commercial Logistics Solutions Manager for Witherley Services said, “We are delighted to partner with the ABP King’s Lynn team, who have handled our first granite cargo capably and professionally, a product which has been welcomed into the local market. We look forward to continuing to work together as we establish and increase our materials offered in the area.”

ABP’s Port of King’s Lynn has benefited from £3.3 million investment, in storage and equipment, in the last couple of years. Whilst agribulks and aggregates are handled both in-dock and on Riverside Quay, facilities at Bentinck Dock exist for the storage and distribution of recycled metal and other renewable energy products.

The port also provides the expertise and equipment to efficiently handle specialist industrial project cargo, supporting the development of major UK infrastructure construction.

ABOUT ABP EAST ANGLIA With the support of its customers, ABP’s Ports of East Anglia, King’s Lynn, Lowestoft and Ipswich contribute £360 million to the UK economy every year, supporting 3,700 jobs in the region and 5,300 jobs nationally. v ABP’s East Anglia ports handle more than 3mt (million tonnes) of cargo every year. v Ports in East Anglia handle over 2mt of agribulks and 170,000 tonnes of timber annually. v The Port of Ipswich is the UK’s foremost export port for agricultural products.

ABOUT WITHERLEY SERVICES Witherley Services is a part of Aggregate Industries and is a major supplier of quality materials and services to the construction industry including primary and recycled aggregates, topsoil and bulk earth moving.

Its vision is to become the supplier of choice in all areas in which it trades. It aims to do this by providing excellent service through highly motivated, professionally trained, knowledgeable and well resourced staff working collaboratively with its customers and suppliers to provide sustainable long-term benefit to all.

Witherley Services has never forgotten its roots as a personal service driven organization. It has successfully married this core ethos with the strength and support that being part of one of the world’s largest construction groups to provide its customers with a helpful, competitive, efficient and committed supply partner.

Witherley Services has two regional sales offices, from which it is territorially able to service its customer base, including small private builds, national house builders, Civil Engineering Companies, Construction Companies and Utility Contractors.

ABOUT ABP

ABP is the UK’s leading ports operator with 21 ports and other transport related businesses creating a unique national network capable of handling a vast array of cargo.

The company contributes £7.5 billion to the UK economy every year and supports 119,000 jobs. Its current investment programme promises to further increase its contribution to regional economies around the UK.

ABP: v handles over 1.5 million vehicles every year; v generates around one quarter of the

UK’s rail freight; v has 1.4 million square metres of covered storage; v has 1,000 hectares of open storage; v handles around 90mt of cargo each year; v owns 5,000 hectares of port estate; and v has 87km of quay.