From faster service and greater accuracy to fewer parcels and simplified admin, the Drury DC is all about making it easier for Kiwi businesses to keep moving. This is Taking Care of Business, future ready.
Watch this video to see how this facility can benefit you and your business.
Extensive use of automation and robotics in NZ Safety Blackwoods' new 18,000 m2 facility will support faster order fulfilment, better customer experiences and create a platform for the company’s future growth.
The new distribution centre in Drury South for NZ Safety Blackwoods is fitted with an automated storage and retrieval system that will ramp up order fulfilment and enable the company to bring third-party logistics warehousing and freight forwarding services in-house.
Covering a massive 18,000 square metres, the development includes a separate office space and a trade centre. The project has been developed in partnership with Calder Stewart, a well-known property and construction firm. Practical completion was set for late 2025, with the centre now open for business as of April 2026.
“Our team is really excited about what this distribution centre will mean for us and for our customers. This state-of-the-art facility makes extensive use of automation and robotics to enable world-class performance and accuracy, and the upshot for our customers will be a simplified and faster procurement process,” says NZ Safety Blackwoods GM Andy Antoci.
The new facility uses the AutoStore automated storage and retrieval system, which Antoci says is billed as “the fastest order fulfilment system per square metre on the market”.
Battery-powered autonomous robots move on a cubic grid system, continuously picking up and rearranging stacked storage bins, and delivering them to connected high-speed workstations for order picking and replenishment – an intelligent, dynamic and reliable intralogistics solution from Kardex’s dedicated AutoStore team.
“With the new facility we’re also able to bring our third-party logistics warehousing and freight forwarding services in-house, which will enable cost savings and reduce our reliance on external partners. In many ways our new North Island distribution centre is a blueprint for the future. Customer expectations are increasing all the time. The bar is constantly being raised, as businesses demand faster, more accurate delivery and greater responsiveness from their suppliers.
Our new centre is one example of how we’re responding to those demands. It allows us to fulfil orders from a single location instead of multiple sites. We’ve also invested in state-of-the-art systems and automation to deliver greater inventory visibility and order accuracy, meaning customers can get everything they need faster, in one delivery. They’ll also benefit from consolidated invoicing, making their admin overhead easier.”
Timely deliveries will also be supported by the location of the new centre in Drury South, which avoids the traffic issues of some other Auckland locations.
Designed for Efficiency and Sustainability
“Building a brand-new facility has given us a fantastic opportunity to create a benchmark in terms of sustainability and we’ve incorporated a number of sustainability measures into the design. As a business, we have a target of net zero scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2035 and our new distribution centre will make a big contribution to that.”
The efficient design means carbon has been kept to a minimum in the building structure. The structure was also upgraded, in partnership with Calder Stewart Energy, to accommodate a 1.5 Megawatt solar energy system – enough to power the whole site.
As well as requiring a smaller physical footprint, the new AutoStore automated storage and retrieval system enables optimised use of space and greater energy efficiency. Ten AutoStore robots only consume the same amount of energy as a single vacuum cleaner (100W).
Forklifts and trucks used in the facility will all be battery powered, eliminating the need for gas-powered equipment. Along with multiple electric forklift charging stations, NZ Safety Blackwoods have also provided multiple electric vehicle charging stations around the site.
Other sustainability-related features include:
- Structural design of building allows for reduced embodied carbon
- Daylight harvesting via translucent roof sheeting
- Rainwater harvesting tanks
- Low-e double glazing
- A building management system for energy and water monitoring and efficiency, including motion sensors for lighting controls and rapid rise doors
- Low VOC paint, containing less volatile organic compounds than standard paint
- Landscaping design featuring low water use
“As well as the physical building design, consolidating three existing distribution centres into one has allowed us to create a more sustainable operation. Less product movement and fewer deliveries allows us to reduce our carbon footprint. It also means we can significantly reduce packaging.”
Site Blessing
In October 2024, NZ Safety Blackwoods held a blessing before they broke ground at the site.
This was attended by Ngati Tamaoho (local iwi), members of their lead team, members of their Roopu and their developer, Calder Stewart.
