The Kroger Co., America's largest grocery retailer, will establish a Customer Fulfillment Center in metro Cleveland, Ohio. The project is expected to create roughly 400 new jobs.

The 270,000 square foot facility is expected to become operational 24 months after the site breaks ground and will service areas in northeastern Ohio and Pennsylvania.

"Kroger is incredibly excited to expand our delivery business in our home state and provide northeast Ohioans access to thousands of fresh and popular products, including our industry-leading Private Selection and Simple Truth brands, through our Customer Fulfillment Center," said Gabriel Arreaga, Kroger's senior vice president and chief supply chain officer.

"We are excited to bring Kroger and Ocado's second automated warehouse to Ohio. As this site develops and goes live, it will be instrumental in delivering fantastic grocery experiences and exciting job opportunities to households across Cleveland, Pennsylvania and beyond," said Luke Jensen, CEO of Ocado Solutions. "Today's announcement marks another milestone to developing Kroger's seamless fulfillment ecosystem across the United States. Ocado's proven technology will allow Kroger to achieve the lowest cost-to-serve in the market, combined with the best freshness, accuracy and service in grocery delivery."

Introduced in partnership with U.K.-based online grocer Ocado in May 2018, the Customer Fulfillment Center (CFC) model combines vertical integration, machine learning, and robotics with affordable and fast delivery service for fresh food.

"Kroger Fulfillment Network's cutting-edge facility will utilize the latest robotics and logistics technology, helping improve access to fresh food in communities without physical stores while creating 400 good-paying jobs," said JobsOhio President and CEO J.P. Nauseef. "This will be Kroger Fulfillment Network's second hub distribution facility in the state, demonstrating the advantage Ohio provides to build out the U.S. supply chain."

"Kroger Fulfillment Network's decision to create a new state-of-the-art facility in northeast Ohio demonstrates that the region has favorable logistics and talent to connect technology with retail," said Team NEO CEO Bill Koehler. "Along with our local partners, ODOD and JobsOhio, we look forward to continuing to work with the company's leadership to ensure their sustained success in northeastern Ohio."