Take a moment to conceptualize one of the biggest warehouses your mind can imagine? How large is that warehouse? Is it 50,000 square feet? How about 100,000 square feet? If so, you’re barely scratching the surface of today’s largest warehouses in the world.
What everyday people do not realize is how large the logistics industry has become over the years and how, with so much product moving from point A to point B, warehouses have grown exponentially. We’re talking millions of square feet and countless pieces of warehouse equipment.
Here are the ten biggest warehouses in the world today!
Boeing Everett Factory
Location: Everett, Washington
Size: 4.3 million ft2 / 398,000 m2
The Boeing Everett Factory, located in Everett, Washington, is a combination airplane assembly factory and storage warehouse. Built-in 1967 for the Boeing 747 airplane, the aerospace company has since expanded the facility several times to accommodate their new airplane programs.
In total, the Boeing Everett Factory covers 98.7 acres, spanning both sides of State Route 526, and is often named as the largest building in the world in terms of volume alone.
John Deere Warehouse
Location: Moline, Illinois
Size: 2.6 million ft2 / 242,000 m2
The John Deere Warehouse, in Illinois, is the second largest warehouse in the world, at a staggering 2.6 million square feet. This massive compound houses the tractor company’s parts and products, including millions of tools, household and farm equipment, and distributes such items to over 30 countries worldwide.
Target Import Warehouse
Location: Washington
Size: 2 million ft2 / 186,000 m2
At 2 million square feet, the Target Import Warehouse in Washington is the third-largest warehouse in the world. The target itself is the second largest retail store in the country, besides Walgreens, with over 1,800 stores across the country. The warehouse is the fourth largest building in the world by square meters. The majority of products sold in Target locations come from this warehouse in Washington.
Tesla Gigafactory
Location: Nevada
Size: 5.3 million ft2 / 492,000 m2
It’s all in the name. The Tesla Gigafactory 1, in Nevada, is 5.3 million square feet, and houses the electric car company Tesla’s energy solutions, including batteries and motors, for its electric vehicles.
Even more impressive is the fact that Tesla intends to expand Gigafactory 1 with over 10 million square feet of space, using nothing but renewable energy to power the entire facility.
Amazon MQY1 Fulfilment Centre
Location: Tennessee, Amazon
Size: 3.6 million ft2 / 334,000 m2
Located in Tennessee, Amazon, the world’s largest online distributor, built a 3.6 million square foot warehouse and fulfillment center in Mt. Juliet. In total, the structure is five stories tall, highly automated, and features over 80,000 square feet of office space for logistics purposes.
Amazon continues to expand, however, and this is not the only distribution center in Tennessee.
Michelin Woodruff U70
Location: South Carolina
Size: 3 million ft2 / 279,000 m2
Michelin Woodruff U70, located in South Carolina, is over 3 million square-feet in size, features five interconnected structures, and utilizes an automated system to pack and ship over 200,000 car tires per day. The warehouse ships to locations and customers across the United States daily.
Nike North America Logistics Campus
Location: Mukilteo, Washington
Size: 2.8 million ft2 / 260,000 m2
In 2015, Nike, one of the world’s largest sportswear brands, opened a 2.8 million square foot distribution and warehouse center in Memphis, TN. From this location, they ship footwear, clothing, and sports equipment to its own brick-and-mortar locations and wholesale retailers, like Walmart, nationwide.
Walmart Distribution Centre Arizona
Location: Arizona
Size: 1.5 million ft2 / 139,000 m2
US retail giant Walmart is thought to be the world’s largest private employer, with 2.2 million members of staff, many of whom work in the company’s supply and distribution channels. Walmart operates over 150 large scale distribution facilities across the US, with its total capacity coming in at 143 million square feet. The largest currently is its 1.5 million square foot distribution centre in Arizona, however Walmart is planning an even larger 2.2 million square foot facility scheduled to open in Indiana in 2024 – primarily to handle an increase in demand from online shopping.
There you have it, ten of the largest warehouses in the world. No doubt this will change, as companies like Tesla and Amazon continue to grow and expand their influence worldwide. With Tesla’s planned expansion of Gigafactory 1, and Amazon opening new facilities annually, the distribution industry is about to shake things up!
