Refrigerated and frozen products from Metro’s network of retailers in Quebec, from Gaspésie to Abitibi via Montreal, will pass through an industrial sector in Terrebonne this winter. Officially opened on Wednesday, the new highly automated mega-distribution center cost more than $420 million.
It’s -25 degrees Celsius in the building, where pallets and crates of frozen food are handled and stored nine stories high. Once the pallets from suppliers are unloaded, the robots, assisted by bundled employees, examine, unpack, classify, transport the products on rails, conveyors or elevators. They then assemble the orders from each of the stores.
“You see the gray towers: these are sequencers which will come and position the boxes [pour chaque commande] in the correct order, based on our algorithm. For example, the heavier boxes will be on the first level, and the more fragile boxes above, describes Yanick Blanchet, senior director of the supply chain. We also have a grouping by type of amenities. Frozen bakery items will be together, frozen meat together, etc. »
The pallets thus formed are coated, then brought to one of the 92 loading docks and sent to Metro, Super C, Adonis, Marché Richelieu and other grocery stores across the province.
The frozen section began operations in September, while the fresh section, such as dairy, tofu and meats, will begin to fill in February. Ultimately, this new 550,000 square foot site will replace three much smaller traditional distribution centers, two located on the island of Montreal and one in Quebec. The new facilities will help Metro offer a greater diversity of products, since its old warehouses had reached their limits.
“This supports the growth in sales of our banners. We had difficulty absorbing the increases in volumes,” explains Mr. Blanchet.
In this era of labor shortages, automation and robotization are also a tool to limit the need for employees. All workers from the two Montreal centers could still be transferred to Terrebonne, and the Quebec building will be used for other purposes. It must be said that several tasks are still carried out by hand in the brand new building. Its employees will have the opportunity to benefit from an early childhood center in 2024, a training room and meals cooked on site. No hiring is underway for the new facilities.
The technologies used, which come from the German company Witron, will also lead to efficiency gains, and therefore a reduction in operating costs, according to Mr. Blanchet.
The large plot of land chosen, in Lanaudière, is located close to highways, which presents a logistical advantage. The immediate neighbor is also a distribution center for rival Sobeys (IGA).
This new infrastructure is the result of an investment program of approximately one billion dollars by Metro which aims to modernize its distribution network. The other counterpart of this program is a state-of-the-art center located in Ontario.
The project is eligible for the provincial government’s new tax holiday for major investment projects, which came into effect in March 2023, according to Caroline Larocque, vice-president of logistics and distribution for Quebec. This income tax holiday or contribution to the Health Services Fund can reach 15% to 25% “of the total eligible investment expenses relating to the realization” of the project, according to the website of the Ministry of Finance. .
In the short term, the company has no such plans for its other types of products, such as fruits and vegetables and dried products, judging that its facilities are still adequate. Metro’s annual revenue is $19 billion.