Heathrow Logistics Park (HLP) was acquired by BlackRock in 2014 with Graftongate employed as development manager. Originally known as Bedfont Trading Estate, the 17-acre site was home to sitting tenants such as car breakers, demolition and recycling companies and was heavily contaminated.  An additional area of land was also purchased, part of Bedfont Country Park and included a fishing lake and walking trails; a far cry from the original use of the site from the 1950s’ as an unlicensed tip.

HLP also lay within the Metropolitan Green Belt, which has a presumption against development. Combining this with the original use factors, conspired to create a very challenging set of circumstances for achieving a new planning permission in order to develop the new logistics centre.

The professional planning team, led by Michael Sparks Associates and Lichfields, achieved a new market-facing permission through careful deployment of a strategy whereby we could improve local visual and actual amenity. Readie Construction Ltd, the selected contractor, devised an innovative ground engineering solution with Terry Collier Associates, the leading structural engineers.

Local myths of buried taxi fleets and subterranean concrete blocks the size of double decker buses proved unfounded and the new development was presented for occupation in late 2016.

The fully let scheme was speculatively developed and comprises four industrial/warehouse units with integral Grade A office space. JAS Forwarding, Airbase GSE, James Cargo Services and Royal Mail are examples of high-profile occupiers that see the dual benefits of clustering and of HLP’s prime industrial location.

Having undergone a full environmental impact assessment, HLP sits seamlessly thanks to its host of green features including PV panels as standard and rainwater harvesting.

HLP is located 2.5 miles away from Heathrow cargo terminal with an HGV drive time of 8 minutes and offers fast access to the motorway network, including M25, M4 and M3.

• Size: 319,700 sq ft
• Qualifications: BREEAM ‘Very Good’
• Occupiers: Airbase GSE, James Cargo Services, JAS Forwarding, Royal Mail
• Partners: BlackRock