Opportunity
Computacenter AG & Co., Europe’s leading vendor-agnostic service provider for information technology, was looking for additional space in Kerpen, Germany. The company already operated a logistics building there, but capacity was no longer sufficient. One of Computacenter’s priorities was that the new facility be located in Kerpen to ensure employees have the same way to work as before. The city of Kerpen shared this interest—keeping Computacenter in the region would save more than 700 jobs. Prologis assisted Computacenter and the city of Kerpen with this project.
Challenge
In order to build Computacenter’s new German headquarters in Kerpen, Prologis faced the initial challenge of finding a suitable site. When an ideal property was found near Computacenter’s existing logistics center, Prologis evaluated the new site's traffic management plan. The goal was to develop an ideal solution for both Computacenter employees and the residents of Kerpen.
Solution
Prologis needed to work closely with the district to build the new logistics facility because the development affected one of the busiest roads in Kerpen, where adding a traffic light wasn’t an option. As a result, Prologis invested in the infrastructure to ensure safe and easy access to the site by building a roundabout, which involved a high level of collaboration because the main road had to be closed temporarily. Thanks to the roundabout, both the facility’s employees and trucks have easy access to the logistics park. Because of Prologis’ investment in the city of Kerpen’s infrastructure and the excellent road network already in place traffic flows safely around the site.
Prologis’ job was to develop a customized 29,000 square meter logistics facility for Computacenter on the approximately 9-hectare site in Kerpen. The short distance between the new and old locations was a significant advantage, especially for the company’s workers—it made the move easier and did not involve big changes for the employees. As a result, together with Computacenter and the city of Kerpen, Prologis succeeded in saving more than 700 jobs.
Lessons Learned
Prologis impressed Computacenter and the city of Kerpen with a well-conceived traffic management plan. As a result, the infrastructure investment benefits Prologis, the employees who work at the logistics properties, the city and its residents.