Global vehicle remarketing and recycling company Copart Inc. is creating a new 68-acre UK ‘Super Centre’ in East Anglia, as part of a major expansion programme to meet continued and growing customer demand.

Copart is the largest business within its sector, with the UK division moving more than half a million vehicles a year and handling $1b worth of vehicle assets.

The new Copart Operation Centre on the A143 at Stanton, north of Bury St Edmunds, will now be the largest vehicle storage and processing centre in the UK. There are currently 16 other nationwide sites in strategic locations across the UK.

Today’s news follows a series of similar growth announcements from Copart last year, including a major new customer service centre in Bedford, the quadrupling in size of their Bristol Operation Centre, significant expansion of their owned transport fleet, and the doubling of their operational capabilities in Scotland with a new Operation Centre near Glasgow. 

Bury St Edmunds has been identified by Copart as an ideal location to meet rising demand in the East of England, mirroring large capacity sites in the South East, South West, and North East, and others planned for the Midlands and the North West.

With an increasing number of severe weather events and an ever-changing car parc due to the rise of electric vehicles, this centre will provide further essential latent storage capacity in the region, adding to Copart’s existing network of Super Centres in the UK.

Copart’s UK and Ireland Managing Director, Jane Pocock, said: 

“Demand from our customers continues to rise and it’s fantastic that we invest to future-proof our business, considering the evolving car parc and the increase in extreme weather events. This site enhances our network of Super Centres and improves storage capacity for anticipated growth in recycling, electric, and hydrogen vehicles, as well as helping to accelerate the diversification of our business into green parts handling.

“This investment marks another significant step forward for our UK business and illustrates our ongoing commitment to remaining at the forefront of the industry and continuing to provide market leading services to all our customers.”

“From an environmental point of view, Copart are committed to ensuring sustainability across all  Operation Centres so we will be deploying sustainable building methods and materials with large parts of the building construction undertaken off site and at specialist factories where there is greater control of the process and much less waste.”

In line with Copart’s sustainability strategy ‘Copart Cares’, existing areas of established mature trees and woodland will be retained and will be further strengthened by the planting of native species across 17-acres of the 68-acre site. 

The company also plans to support growth in wildlife, and minimise environmental impact on commuting bats, through the use of bat-boxes and dark sky lighting.

Following a detailed ecology survey that assessed the current biodiversity, it is expected that the development will increase the ecological value of the site by more than 10% above the current level.

 The Bury St Edmunds site is expected to be operational by the end of 2022, subject to standard planning, and will provide between 100 and 120 new jobs. Apprenticeships will also be available.

Copart UK is part of the US-based global Copart business and currently employs around 1,100 people in the UK.