Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers broke ground on its new 107 acre permanent auction site in Butner, N.C. (Granville County) just north of Raleigh-Durham Sept. 13. Butner Mayor Tom Lane, Granville County dignitaries and other invited guests joined Ritchie Bros. representatives for the official groundbreaking ceremony.

The Raleigh-Durham auction site will replace Ritchie Bros.’ 33-acre auction site in Statesville. Ritchie Bros. expects to conduct at least four unreserved public equipment auctions each year at the new site, which is scheduled for completion for mid 2012. Ritchie Bros. operates 42 other auction sites worldwide.

“We are excited to have a company with the reputation of Ritchie Bros. as part of our community. Their presence here will add much to our community and potentially draw other businesses to the area as well as support existing businesses already based here,” said Lane in a speech made at the groundbreaking ceremony. “The potential we see with Ritchie Bros. coming here as a leader in growth will make a major impact for us.”

Site preparation by Branch Highways Inc. will begin immediately. Construction plans include developing 45 acres of the site and building a new 33,000 sq.-ft. auction facility and a 16,000 sq. ft. refurbishing building. The auction facility will feature an auction theater with seating capacity for 500 and a virtual ramp theater with seating capacity for 300.

In the main auction theater, bidders remain seated in comfort while equipment being sold is driven across a ramp in front of them.

In the virtual ramp theater, photos of stationary equipment items are projected onto a large screen in front of the bidders.

The new site is located centrally within the state of North Carolina and approximately 24 mi. north of the Raleigh-Durham International Airport. It offers highway visibility from Interstate 85 and access to major transportation routes and services, including restaurants and accommodations. Equipment will be displayed and made available for inspections at the auction site in the weeks leading up to each auction.

Ritchie Bros. closed on the Raleigh-Durham property in April 2011 after searching for a larger property to support its growing operations in North Carolina and Virginia. While the Raleigh-Durham site is being built, Ritchie Bros. will continue to conduct unreserved public auctions at its Statesville facility with the next auction scheduled for Sept. 28, 2011.

For more information, visit rbauction.com.

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