BPL is a global and national supply chain and logistics specialist in warehousing, transport and distribution.
"A lot of our business is port-based. In addition to the consolidation of our facilities providing economies of scale, the Rossborough site has good access to the Durban container terminal - especially with the Khangela Bridge, which now connects Bayhead Road to Rossborough," says Leisegang.
The Rossborough property was upgraded and reconfigured with a R25 million investment from Growthpoint Properties and additional substantial capital expenditure by BPL, to achieve its ideal installation.
"Durban has a number of older industrial nodes that still enjoy user demand because of their location, specifically those with proximity to the port," says Greg de Klerk, KwaZulu-Natal regional head of Growthpoint Properties.
"There are attractive benefits to redeveloping properties in these nodes, further enhanced by the general lack of land available for new industrial developments."
De Klerk notes that repurposing buildings in these areas provides extensive benefits for both property owner and tenant.
Before its redevelopment, the site included the established BPL facility in addition to a number of older buildings, which had been added together progressively in a variety of separate projects over the years.
In order to create a workable warehouse for handling, internal walls were removed to improve the flow of the facility, flooring was upgraded and roof height was increased in selected areas, with the guidance of Peter Reis Architects and construction work carried out by JT Ross.
A number of site buildings were also demolished to create greater yard area, facilitating the relocation of the fleet to the new premises.
Leisegang adds that perhaps the biggest challenge of the project was the timeframe. Construction of the redevelopment began in March this year for BPL to be fully operation by November 2011.
"The complex logistics of the project were superbly handled by everyone. We now have a logistics park which has hugely improved our operations, comprising our established and new facilities in Rossborough with a spacious yard area surrounding both warehouses," he concludes.
