Robotic warehouse the size of 11 MCGs coming to Melbourne

The largest warehouse ever constructed in Australia is to be built in Melbourne’s northern suburbs.

Amazon Australia has announced plans to open its second Amazon Robotics fulfilment centre (FC) at the AustralianSuper-owned Craigieburn Logistics Estate, in Craigieburn, northern Melbourne.

The warehouse will span around 209,000 square metres across four levels, equivalent to 11 Melbourne Cricket Grounds, or five times the size of Federation Square, making it the largest warehouse ever built in Australia.

That record had been held by Amazon’s Western Sydney robotics site, which has now been exceeded by 9,000 sqm.

The construction of this second robotics site follows the launch of Amazon Australia’s first robotics site in Western Sydney in 2022, which doubled the company’s operational footprint.

Robots will work collaboratively with employees by moving ‘pods’ of inventory.

Targeting completion in 2025, the new Melbourne site will house up to 25 million of the smaller items that are sold on Amazon.com.au.

It is expected the facility will create around 2,000 local jobs once fully operational, with the opportunity to work alongside advanced robotics. 

Excavation works have begun on the site which is being developed by LOGOS. It is expected the construction and fit out of the state-of-the-art facility will create an additional 2,000 jobs for the area.

The new fulfilment centre will be equipped with advanced Amazon Robotics technology. Robots will work collaboratively with employees by moving ‘pods’ of inventory to them, reducing the time and effort that would otherwise be required for the employee to stow items for sale or pick them for new customer orders. 

Amazon Australia’s Country Manager Janet Menzies said, “We chose Melbourne as the home of our first fulfilment centre when we launched in Australia in 2017, and the introduction of this state-of-the-art robotics fulfilment centre in the city’s north continues our commitment here.”

The Mayor of Hume City, Councillor, Joseph Haweil, said the size and scale of the project is unparalleled in Hume City, as are its economic benefits to locals.

“The cutting-edge technology used at the site will ensure our community reaps these economic benefits for years to come.”

AustralianSuper is the owner of the Craigieburn Logistics Estate, which is managed and developed by LOGOS. 

Amazon’s new fulfilment centre will be the anchor of the 90-hectare Craigieburn Logistics Estate which is strategically located 23km north of Melbourne’s CBD within a state significant industrial precinct.

Excavation work has commenced on the site, which will be purpose built to meet Amazon’s requirements - with the lease for the centre facilitated by CBRE’s Industrial & Logistics Occupier business.

The Melbourne Robotics fulfilment centre will be Amazon’s sixth operations site in Melbourne, supporting the company’s existing logistics network in Victoria which includes centres in Dandenong South and Ravenhall, Amazon’s first Australian standalone sort centre and two Amazon Logistics sites.