JR East Logistics Completes Four-Temperature-Zone Logistics Facility in Ichikawa, Chiba
Ichikawa Distribution Center, a four-temperature-zone logistics facility that JR East Logistics had been developing in Futamata, Ichikawa City, Chiba Prefecture, was completed in June 2026. It will serve as a base consolidating logistics center functions that had been dispersed by temperature zone, within the company's core business of logistics for JR East's "ekinaka" in-station stores. Operations will begin in phases from October 2026.
The facility is located about 1.3 km from the Koya JCT on the Gaikan Expressway and the Metropolitan Expressway Bayshore Route, handling wide-area delivery throughout the Tokyo metropolitan area in addition to central-city delivery. A seven-minute walk from Futamatashimmachi Station on the JR Keiyo Line, it is a location expected to secure a stable workforce. The four-story building has a gross floor area of approximately 10,100 tsubo (approx. 359,400 sq. ft.). On a gross-floor-area basis, it is the largest existing refrigerated and freezer-capable logistics facility in the Chiba Bay area (compiled by the editorial team based on estie Logistics Research).
The facility supports four temperature zones—frozen, refrigerated, constant-temperature, and ambient—with a berth design that allows goods of different temperature zones to be mixed and loaded onto a single truck. In addition, it has introduced the latest material-handling equipment such as automated conveyance systems and picking robots to improve operational efficiency.
In the Chiba Bay area where this facility is located, the development of large-scale refrigerated and freezer warehouses is advancing. Projects such as the Chiba City Mihama-ku Shinko Logistics Facility Plan (gross floor area of approximately 16,500 tsubo, completion scheduled for June 2027) in Mihama Ward, Chiba City, and the Shin-Narashino Ekimae Logistics Facility Plan (gross floor area of approximately 27,300 tsubo, completion scheduled for July 2028) in Narashino City are planned, and facility supply anticipating food and retail logistics demand in the Tokyo metropolitan area continues (see related article: Haseko Sohgoh Development and Sankei Building Begin Construction of Large-Scale Temperature-Controlled Logistics Facility in Chiba).
Major Refrigerated and Freezer Logistics Facilities Scheduled for Completion in the Chiba Bay Area
Name | Location | Scheduled Completion |
|---|---|---|
(tentative) Chiba City Mihama-ku Shinko Logistics Plan | Mihama Ward, Chiba City | June 2027 |
CBRE IM Funabashi | Hinode, Funabashi City | July 2027 |
CBRE IM Ichikawa 2 | Hongyotoku, Ichikawa City | April 2028 |
(tentative) Shin-Narashino Ekimae Logistics Facility Plan | Akanehama, Narashino City | July 2028 |
Key Facts
- Property Name: Ichikawa Distribution Center
- Developer: JR East Logistics Co., Ltd.
- Location: 717-68 Futamata, Ichikawa City, Chiba
- Nearest Station: Seven-minute walk from Futamatashimmachi Station on the JR Keiyo Line
- Nearest Interchanges: Baraki IC on the Keiyo Road (about 1.4 km) / Koya JCT on the Tokyo-Gaikan Expressway and Metropolitan Expressway Bayshore Route (about 1.4 km)
- Construction Start: November 2024
- Completion: June 2026
- Operations Start: October 2026 (in phases)
- Number of Floors: 4F / 1 penthouse floor (steel-frame construction)
- Area: Site area of approximately 4,386 tsubo (approx. 156,100 sq. ft.) / Gross Floor Area of approximately 10,112 tsubo (approx. 359,800 sq. ft.)
- Temperature Zones: Frozen (-20°C) / Refrigerated (5°C) / Constant-temperature (18°C) / Ambient
