The rise of ecommerce, with the pull of brands such as Amazon, has brought many changes in the market, including that of increased use of industrial plots and warehouses. According to the real estate consultant CBRE, in 2018 there was a logistic contract around 1.9 million m2, which represents an increase of 16% compared to the previous year and the investment volume reached 1,500 million euros.
“The logistics contracting of e-commerce is very high in general terms and this trend will increase. In Spain, electronic commerce represents 4% when in other countries it exceeds 12%. There is room to grow and it will have an effect on logistics ” says Alberto Larrazábal, National Director of Industry and Logistics at CBRE Research. It emphasizes two types of ship: the big ones, «that are outside the city and that are around 50,000 square meters», and the smaller ones, «closer to the city that deals with the distribution of packages».
Miquel Serracanta, director of the Master in Supply Chain of EAE Business School, points out five factors that give value to the ships. First, the location and access to fast communication routes. “The last mile is the most expensive and should be close to the city center” , he says. Then the number of docks for loading and unloading, “which allows you to be simultaneous and not sequential, is essential to be faster.” Third, the ship itself, “the more diaphanous the better, and with square or rectangular shapes.” Size is another factor to take into account, “they are now looking for smaller but better connected.” And fifthly the height in meters, “depending on the product you must download.“