Multicube Osthessen with a comprehensive sustainability concept

By 2050, Nestlé aims to achieve zero-green emissions - around 3.5 million tons of_CO2 are to be saved worldwide in the area of transport and logistics alone. The company's sustainability ambitions are also reflected in the newly built Multicube Osthessen distribution center in Mecklar near Bad Hersfeld. From the construction phase to operation, Nestlé Germany and its logistics partner Pfenning Logistics attached great importance to the sustainability of the building in all areas.

During construction, for example, attention was paid to the use of resource-saving materials and minimal impact on the local flora and fauna. 32 modern air-to-air heat pumps will be used to heat the office space and to heat and cool the hall areas, which will be powered by a mix of sustainable electricity sources in future, thus ensuring independence from gas. A rooftop photovoltaic system with almost 24,000 solar modules on an area of around 50,000 square meters will ensure the production of green electricity in the future and can save around 5,000 tons_{of CO2} per year. It fits seamlessly into the innovative and sustainable supply concept and makes an important contribution on the way to low-emission logistics operations.

Rana Matthias Nag, Managing Director of the pfenning Group: "Our Multicube concept always follows strict sustainability criteria. Here in Mecklar, we have gone one step further and, against the backdrop of the gas crisis in 2022, have made operations independent of this fossil fuel. This makes the entire facility_CO2-neutral, so we have already submitted our application for the DGNB's platinum certificate."

"We are proud that after the initial test phase and a gradual move, everything is now running almost smoothly and the processes have become very well established. With the multicube osthessen, we are setting new standards and taking an important step in the right direction," says Matthias Fleischer, Director Supply Chain IS/ IT at Nestlé Germany.

Central location for shorter transport routes
The location of the Multicube Osthessen was chosen carefully. The central location offers excellent transport connections to retailers and end customers that Nestlé supplies with products from the coffee, chocolate, cereals and Nestlé Professional ranges. This reduces transport kilometers by as much as 30 percent, which in turn reduces the_{CO2 footprint} in the long term.

The 640,000 or so pallets that leave the distribution center each year are transported from A to B fully automatically in the narrow-aisle warehouse (VNA) using automated storage and retrieval machines. Modern drones (multicopters) are used for automatic inventory management, which scan the goods codes in the shelves, which are over 14 meters high, and transmit the data to the digital warehouse system.

Nestlé Germany is also able to offer the new European pallet standard EUL1 in the food segment for the first time in order to achieve more efficient utilization of the vehicles. Thanks to their height of 1.20 meters, the pallets can be stacked in trucks 2.60 meters high, making optimum use of space. Nestlé is working together with its trading partners to ensure that the European pallet standard is implemented across the board in Germany by industry and trade.