MANHEIM Auctions has launched a £300,000 investment programme to overhaul its A1 Knottingley site in Yorkshire.

And Manheim Scottish Auctions has more than doubled the undercover parking area at its site in Glasgow from 20,000 to more than 50,000sq ft.

The extra space means the site can store more than 300 cars under cover and run two auction halls simultaneously.

Manheim believes the Glasgow investment will lead to a 50% increase in the number of vehicles sold at the site from 20,000 to 30,000 vehicles per year.

The changes will coincide with the closure of its storage and refurbishment centre in St Albans on June 21.

Operations director Mark Yates said: 'The site provides a high level of service to our fleet customers, but without extra space to expand the facility it was uneconomical to run.

'Storing cars takes up a lot of space and they are normally in store for longer periods of time, unlike cars at auction that come and go very quickly. We are looking to re-let the St Albans facility and will transfer the workload to other sites in southern England.'