Building work for Great Bear’s new warehousing facility at Markham Vale has been completed ahead of its opening later this year.

The 479,285 sq ft site will become the logistics provider’s largest distribution centre in the UK, creating a significant number of new jobs in the Chesterfield area.

Great Bear CEO Glenn Lindfield said he was delighted at how quickly Henry Boot Developments and Bowmer & Kirkland completed construction of the new facility.

Mr Lindfield said that the Markham Vale expansion would be “a positive step forward” for Great Bear.

He added: “The site is exactly what we’ve been looking for with tailor-made facilities in a prime location just off Junction 29A of the M1 motorway, providing easy access to our customers and other bases across the UK.”

Great Bear has taken the Markham Vale site on a 15-year lease.

The company was acquired by shared-user FMCG logistics services provider Culina Group in March this year.