Medical technology company Medtronic opened a new distribution centre in Heerlen with CEVA Logistics on Tuesday. With an area of 33,000 square metres, the DC is the largest in the region.
The new distribution centre, built next to Medtronic's existing facility in Heerlen, provides storage and distribution of the company's medical devices. These include surgical instruments, implants and patient monitoring systems.
The building consists of three buildings, A to C. There is around 33,400 square metres of storage capacity on the ground floor and 4,621 square metres on the mezzanine. It also has 5,000 square metres of office space. Logistics provider CEVA Logistics takes care of the day-to-day operations.
'Good logistics is vital'
"From our distribution centre , 15,000 different hospitals in Europe and elsewhere can be reached within 24 hours," said Sikko Zoer, Vice President Customer Care and Supply Chain of Medtronic EMEA. "It is our responsibility to deliver under all conditions, to all our customers and patients. The additional capacity and the unique geographical location at the Trilandis park make that possible, and ensure that we can handle the expected growth in Europe. Good logistics is vital."
Largest commercial employer in the region
The arrival of the new DC further increases the number of jobs in South Limburg. On top of Medtronic's more than 1,000 existing jobs in Heerlen, another 300 new employees will now join CEVA Logistics at the distribution centre. Together, this makes the two parties the largest commercial employer in the region.
