DPD equips new North East hub for high-volume parcel flows
DPD’s new distribution centre at Forrest Park in Newton Aycliffe has been fitted with a coordinated package of entrance and loading-bay technology from ASSA ABLOY Entrance Systems. The installation is intended to support high-volume parcel processing while protecting internal space, energy performance and worker safety.
The facility was developed by Barberry, built by Caddick Construction and designed by AJA Architects. Its role is to increase DPD’s parcel-handling capacity across the North East, where rapid vehicle movements and reliable building access are central to daily operations.
Doors designed around site flow
The supplier installed 32 OH1042P insulated sectional overhead doors. Their vertical-lift configuration keeps the travel path above the opening, preserving usable floor and manoeuvring space for vehicles and operational equipment. Insulation, durability and dependable operation were also key requirements for a building expected to handle intensive traffic.
Twenty-five of the doors are level-access units, each 6,160mm wide, serving principal warehouse access points. Seven further doors include centrally positioned pass doors with 30mm low-profile thresholds, panic bars and integrated safety switches. Wind-reinforcement trusses add structural stability to the door assemblies.
Integrated loading-bay equipment
Eleven loading bays were supplied as complete systems. Each combines an OH1042P dock door with two rows of vision panels, improving visibility around the interface between the building and arriving vehicles. The bays also use DL6220T telescopic dock levellers with a six-tonne capacity and a 500mm telescopic lip, allowing trailers with different configurations to be connected to the warehouse floor.
Dock shelters, buffers and wheel guides complete the arrangement. Finished in RAL 5010 blue, the package is designed to reduce friction during loading and unloading, protect goods at the transfer point and create clearer working conditions for drivers and warehouse teams.
For industrial operators, the project illustrates the value of treating doors, levellers and safety accessories as one operational system rather than separate components. At a parcel hub, that approach can support faster vehicle turnaround while contributing to the building’s thermal-efficiency objectives and long-term resilience.
