The largest warehouse ever built in Australia is officially open.
It belongs to Amazon Australia and spans 200,000 square metres - that's around the size of 24 rugby league fields.
The new robotics site is the first of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere and can house up to 20 million of the smaller items sold on amazon.com.au including jewellery, books, electronics, pantry items and toys.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison, Western Sydney Minister Stuart Ayres and Penrith mayor Tricia Hitchen cut the ribbon to officially open the facility in Kemps Creek in western Sydney on Wednesday.
The four-storey warehouse will create more than 1500 jobs in the region.
Robotic drives will work collaboratively with Amazon team members by moving pods of inventory to them which will save time and mean faster delivery to customers around the country. The more efficient process will allow up to 40 per cent more items to be stowed.
Amazon Australia director of operations Craig Fuller said the opening of the first robotics fulfilment centre was a huge milestone for Amazon Australia.
Amazon Robotics fulfilment centre (by the numbers):
- the total floor area of the building is around 200,000 square metres - around the same land size as Taronga Zoo and double the land size of Bondi Beach..
- It has the capacity to house up to 20 million items.
- Around 14 kilometres of advanced conveyancing equipment has been installed to move inventory and packages around the building.
- Approximately 2.5 kilometres of Amazon Robotics safety fencing has been used to create the robotics fields.
- The Amazon logo affixed near the top of the building exterior is approximately 9 metres long and 2.7 metres high.
- The overall land size of the site including the carpark and building is 150,000 square metres.
- Approximately 4000 workers were involved in the construction and fit out of the building.
- The building comprises 13,500 tonnes of Australian steel; 3000 tonnes more steel than was used for Sydney Olympic Park Stadium.
- More than 200,000 nuts and bolts were used for installation of the structural steel frame.
