Kmart has opened its massive new North Island distribution centre in Hamilton and plans to introduce robots to all stores throughout New Zealand.
The 40,000-square-metre Rurakura Superhub would serve as a strategic hub for the store's North Island operations.
It included warehousing, distribution, storage, a container yard and offices, and would supply 26 Kmart stores across New Zealand, alongside the Christchurch distribution centre.
Kmart chief executive John Gualtieri said today that moving to a larger, purpose-built facility would allow the company to work more efficiently.
“We’re passionate about setting up for the future in New Zealand ... Our new distribution centre will enable us to improve our productivity, meaning we are creating a more reliable flow of stock into stores and into our customer’s hands.”
The Superhub was developed by Tainui Group Holdings (TGH). Its chair, Hinerangi Raumati, described the opening of the Kmart facility as a “real boost” to the Hamilton and Waikato economies.
“It’s a major statement of confidence in our region as a distribution and logistics centre. It has provided certainty of work for many dozens of trades and sub-trades ... and there’s been strong interest from Waikato-Tainui members and the local community in the more than 100 new jobs at Kmart.”
TGH chief executive Chris Joblin said the new centre offered transport efficiencies and a lower environmental impact.
“Notably, the Kmart centre’s prime position grants access to the Ruakura Inland Port, forging an eco-friendly connection to the Port of Tauranga and MetroPort in Auckland via rail freight transport lines.”
The new distribution centre has been built with an eye on sustainability, from construction materials to design and operation features. It included solar panels that generated up to 300kW of power, rainwater harvesting, onsite stormwater treatment, electronic vehicle charging stations and bike racks.
The centre’s structure would also include low volatile organic compound paints, led lighting, double glazing, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems that use low-emission refrigerants, and close to 20 per cent of the overall site is landscaped with extensive plantings.
Last month, TGH welcomed the first goods trains at the adjacent 9ha Ruakura Inland Port. The port is served by two 800-metre rail sidings offering seamless rail connections to the Port of Tauranga and MetroPort in Auckland.
Those ports served about 85 train services per week, and call-ins at the Ruakura Inland Port would be scaled to meet demand.
Raumati said the opening of the huge facility for Kmart marked out the Ruakura Superhub as “business ready” after four years of development and construction for the 92ha first stage of the hub, which would eventually occupy 490ha.
“It has provided certainty of work for many dozens of trades and sub-trades through the pandemic recovery period and there’s been strong interest from Waikato-Tainui members and the local community in the more than 100 new jobs at Kmart.”
Robots for NZ stores
Kmart also announced today that it would be bringing robots to its New Zealand stores. Gualtieri said the robot, named Tory, would feature in all 26 of stores and was the first of its kind for New Zealand.
The self-navigating robot uses this Radio Frequency Identification technology to count all clothing, footwear and accessories in Kmart stores each day by scanning the tags on products.
”Typically working overnight, Tory gives store team members more time to focus on serving customers, while also giving them an accurate view of what products their store has and where to find them.”
Stores would previously do a stocktake once a year but Tory could now do this every day, he said.
“We know how much joy our products bring to our New Zealand customers, so getting the products they need into their hands as easily as possible is our highest priority. We’ve had great success rolling out our Tory robot [in Australia], and we are excited to bring this technology to each of our New Zealand stores.”
The name Tory is short for inventory.
Gualtieri said customers might not always see Tory roaming around the shop floor but they could expect to see improved availability of products in the stores.
