Majid Al Futtaim, a leading shopping mall, communities, retail and leisure pioneer across the Middle East, Africa and Asia, has broken ground on global retailer Carrefour's largest regional distribution centre at the National Industries Park (NIP) in Dubai.

The facility is four times the size of Carrefour’s current largest distribution centre building in the region, said senior officials at the ground-breaking ceremony held in Dubai.

It was attended by senior officials including Mohammed Al Muallem, the chief executive of Jafza and senior vice-president and managing director of DP World - UAE Region, Shehab Sultan Mesmar, the senior vice-president for administrative services, Ayoub Al Mulla, the vice-president sales, Eric Legros, the chief executive at Majid Al Futtaim Retail, Marco Antonios, the senior vice-president (OmniChannels Solutions and Supply Chain), Miguel Povedano, the executive regional director for Carrefour UAE at Majid Al Futtaim Retail, and Younis Al Mulla, the senior vice-president (development and government Affairs at Majid Al Futtaim Retail).

Speaking at the ceremony, Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, the group chairman and CEO at DP World, the parent company of National Industries Park, said: "It has become an ideal destination for both international and national companies thanks to the benefits and incentives offered to customers and also its strategic location adjacent to Al Maktoum International Airport and Jebel Ali Port."

"This allows companies to serve the local market and reach regional and international destinations in record time," noted Bin Sulayem.

Assuring Majid Al Futtaim Retail of the highest level of service for the Carrefour Logistics Center, Bin Sulayem said: "We always make efforts to enhance customer experience in line with the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai to provide the right environment for investments in the UAE in line with the UAE Vision 2021 and Dubai Plan 2021, in preparing the country for the post-oil era.”

Al Mulla said the upcoming distribution centre will also feature advanced warehousing, storage and logistics technologies.

"It is expected to save over 50 per cent energy per cubic metre in line with Majid Al Futtaim’s sustainability goals for energy efficiency as well as it’s continuous efforts to Create Great Moments for Everyone, Everyday," he noted.

According to him, the multi-temperature storage at the new distribution centre is designed to meet the storage needs of the different food types and dry foods as well as warehousing for non-food goods.

With a total storage capacity of over 400 million units, it can support Carrefour’s brick and mortar stores in addition to the retailer's omni-channel business.

"Quality and choice are key areas on which we focus. Carrefour’s distribution centre in National Industries Park will be equipped with the finest technology, allowing us to meet the growing demand of our customers and process the orders quickly and efficiently," he added.-TradeArabia News Service