ALD Automotive – one of the UK’s largest vehicle leasing companies – is preparing to relocate to a new South West HQ as the construction of its impressive new £12 million offices enters the final stages.
Commercial property developer Stoford has completed the shell of the building at Vertex Park, Lyde Green, South Gloucestershire, near Bristol, in preparation for the company’s move to the 36,000 sq ft of office accommodation. Internal work is now well underway.
The development will enable ALD Automotive staff to move from their existing headquarters in Fishponds, Bristol, to state-of-the-art offices providing much-needed space for further recruitment and planned expansion.
Stoford was granted detailed planning consent for the three-storey, Grade A, BREEAM ‘very good’ development by South Gloucestershire Council. Contractor Midas Construction expects to reach practical completion in November.
Stoford director Gerard Ludlow said: “Very good progress has been made right from the start of this project and it is great to see everything is on schedule for ALD Automotive’s anticipated move to the Vertex Park site.
“The development will enable ALD Automotive to move from its current headquarters to a fantastic new office environment for its current team and will allow further opportunity for expansion.”
The project is the first sizeable out-of-town pre-let office development in the Bristol market for five years. The site’s proximity to the Bristol & Bath Science Park and established facilities such as the National Composite Centre, its location on a modern business park and access to the M4, make it a very attractive proposition, added Gerard.
Mel Dawson, managing director of ALD Automotive, said: “We moved to our current location in 1995 when we had less than 100 staff and, since then, we have grown significantly and now have almost 450 employees. Looking after the needs of blue-chip Plcs, SMEs and private individuals – and being part of an international group that manages 1.2 million vehicles across 47 countries worldwide – it’s important that our new office environment not only reflects the size of the business we now are and allows us to continue our planned expansion, but helps us to operate more effectively in meeting the needs of our customers.”
South Gloucestershire Council’s leader Cllr Matthew Riddle said: “South Gloucestershire has one of the highest levels of employment in the country and we are very pleased that ALD Automotive have chosen to build their new facilities here. Vertex Park, which is part of the Emersons Green Enterprise Area, is an ideal location for the business with excellent transport access to the nearby ring road and directly to the M32 and M4/M5 motorway corridors. We look forward to continuing to work with Stoford, Taylor Wimpy and ALD to support this relocation and expansion.”
Stoford is a leading specialist in occupier-focused development. It has delivered over 10 million sq ft of pre-let development and in 2015 has more than 950,000 sq ft of pre-let space under construction throughout the UK.