Seeking to increase its roasting capacity to support its international growth ambitions, Costa’s has invested £38 million in a state-of-the-art, new Roastery in Basildon. The facility’s design blends the Costa team’s 40 years’ roasting expertise, with state-of-the-art technology and robotic automation, to nurture the coffee bean from the moment it arrives to when it is packaged and shipped to its local Costa retail outlet. It also provides a central office and training hub for Costa which it has never had before, reflecting its transformation from family-run business to major part of the Whitbread empire.
Costa also wanted its new facility to be one of the most sustainable industrial buildings in the world. It’s location on the new Prologis Park in Basildon was chosen for its proximity to Tilbury Docks where Costa’s raw coffee beans are shipped to. The building itself was designed and constructed to achieve BREEAM Outstanding. Sustainability initiatives include on-site renewable energy generation from a 249kw solar photovoltaic system – providing power for the roasters and hot water from the rainwater harvesting system.
The Roastery represents a once in a generation investment by Costa and is central to its growth plans for the next 20-30 years. As a one-off project of considerable complexity, getting design and delivery right was critical to the client and involved Artelia co-ordinating and managing input from stakeholder groups across the Whitbread and Costa Coffee business, a specialist international supply chain, as well as developer Prologis and its main contractor. Through rigorous project and cost management and collaborative teamwork, the facility was handed over on budget and on time in December 2016.
