VIDEO | The future of industrial and logistics in Greater Manchester

What will the industrial and logistics sector look like in the next five to 10 years? This roundtable discussion, hosted by DAC Beachcroft, had a group of developers, local authorities, and agents share their predictions as to what the future holds.

You can hear our panellists’ main takeaways from the conversation in the video at the top of this article.

Participants

• Emily Armstrong, senior development manager at FI Real Estate Management
• Sally Morris-Smith, partner at DAC Beachcroft
• Andrew Pexton, North West regional director at Harworth
• Richard Roe, corporate director of place at Trafford Council
• James Scott, director at Maple Grove Developments
• John Sullivan, director and head of the industrial and logistics department at Colliers
• Dan Symonds, development manager at Glenbrook
• chaired by Julia Hatmaker, editor of Place North West

Key talking points

Currently, the industrial scene in Greater Manchester has high demand and limited supply – with development aspirations curtailed by viability challenges and planning delays.

That being said, our roundtable participants were optimistic about the future of the sector in the city region. They noted that Greater Manchester is primed to succeed in areas like advanced manufacturing, thanks to its strong university research pipeline.

Going forward, the panellists agreed that industrial developments are getting more and more green – both literally, with more green spaces, and figuratively, with improved energy efficiency credentials. Because of demands on the national grid, they predicted there would be a push towards developing self-sufficient industrial schemes capable of generating their own power.

District heat networks and hydrogen energy networks, like what is being developed by HyNet, are also on the horizon.

The future will also feature more campus-like industrial developments, where retail and restaurants sit alongside sheds.

On the wish list for the roundtable was to see the ship canals around Greater Manchester return to prominence as a way to transport goods, helping alleviate highway concerns.

For more from this roundtable discussion, you can simply watch the video at the top of this article or on the Place North West YouTube channel.  Learn more about DAC Beachcroft by visiting dacbeachcroft.com.