IN Brief:
- Marks & Spencer has started construction of a £340m automated food distribution centre at DIRFT in Northamptonshire.
- The 1.3m sq ft building will use pallet cranes, high-speed shuttles, hands-free picking, and low-carbon building features.
- The scheme strengthens the UK pipeline for logistics buildings shaped by automation, energy performance, and rail-linked distribution.
Marks & Spencer has started construction of its new £340m automated National Distribution Centre at Daventry International Rail Freight Terminal, adding one of the UK’s largest current logistics builds to the food retail distribution market.
The 1.3m sq ft Northamptonshire facility is being developed with Prologis UK as development partner, while Winvic Construction is delivering the main build. Once operational, the site will support the transformation of M&S Food’s distribution network, increasing capacity across more than 200 stores and strengthening product availability across the retailer’s national estate.
Work has begun following a steel-signing event attended by representatives from M&S, Gist, Prologis, West Northamptonshire Council, and the local parliamentary constituency. The centre is scheduled to open in 2029 and is expected to support more than 1,000 permanent roles, alongside a substantial construction workforce during the build phase.
Within the building, automated pallet cranes, high-speed shuttles, and hands-free picking technology will form part of the operational fit-out. That pushes the scheme beyond a conventional warehouse shell, with the structure, slab, roof, power supply, internal logistics systems, and commissioning programme all needing to operate as a single integrated delivery package.
The environmental specification is also a major part of the development. The NDC is targeting BREEAM Outstanding and will incorporate recycled materials, rooftop solar, rainwater harvesting, EV charging, and a dedicated vehicle maintenance unit. Earlier project material has also described the building as fully electric and targeting EPC A+, adding a stronger energy-performance brief to the construction programme.
Large logistics buildings are increasingly being shaped by automation density, grid capacity, roof loading, fleet electrification, and data infrastructure. Floor tolerances, column grids, fire strategy, access routes, M&E capacity, and system commissioning now carry greater weight during design and construction, particularly where automated handling equipment is central to the occupier’s operating model.
DIRFT gives the project a strong infrastructure base. The estate sits within the UK’s established logistics “golden triangle” and benefits from road and rail freight connectivity, allowing occupiers to consolidate national distribution while retaining access to intermodal transport. Prologis has also identified wider activity at DIRFT, including build-to-suit projects for M&S, XPO / Arla, and Laura James, alongside the speculative DC107 development.
The scheme joins a wider logistics development pipeline in which sustainability specification and automation readiness are becoming more important selection criteria. Panattoni’s planned 500,000 sq ft Wakefield logistics scheme, which also targets BREEAM Outstanding and net zero carbon in construction, points to continuing demand for high-performance logistics buildings where occupier need, site location, and technical specification align.
Schemes of this scale require early coordination between structural design, services, automation suppliers, energy systems, and operational handover. A late change to an automation layout or power requirement can disrupt steelwork, slab design, containment, fire protection, and commissioning, making front-end planning central to programme certainty.
The Daventry project places logistics construction firmly within the technically demanding end of the built environment. As retailers reorganise supply chains around automation, speed, availability, and carbon performance, the buildings supporting those networks are becoming larger, more energy-intensive, and more closely tied to long-term operating strategy.
