BCA Paddock Wood, the vehicle auction company, has opened a second floor viewing area for cars.

The expansion nearly doubles undercover capacity at the British Car Auctions centre, one of 19 across the UK. It took 10 weeks to complete and involved fitting new windows and refurbishing the whole area, which was previously used for marshalling vehicles and as a storage deck. A new imaging bay will be fitted in the next phase of development.

The new viewing area was officially opened by David Cole, Ford Retail National Group Disposals, and BCA’s Robin Wilde, general manager for Paddock Wood. Ford Retail Group offers around 150 cars every week at Paddock Wood and was the first vendor to use the new facility.

Mr Wilde said: “We are delighted to open the new viewing area at BCA Paddock Wood, which allows us to display around 200 cars fully undercover at the centre, meaning better facilities and service for our sellers and buyers alike.”

Mr Cole added: “Paddock Wood is our best performing BCA centre and we at Ford Retail Group enjoy a loyal following of buyers, with a highly successful weekly Tuesday sale. This additional viewing area is a significant addition to the progress both Ford Retail and Robin Wilde and his team have made since Robin has taken over the reins here.”

BCA started in 1946 as Southern Counties Car Auctions. It now sells more than 12,000 vehicles a week at auction and via the internet. Now part of BCA Europe, it has an annual turnover of more than £4 billion and is Europe’s largest vehicle re-marketing company.

Most customers are businesses - fleet operators, manufacturers, finance and leasing houses, rental companies, national authorities, and professionals from across the retail and wholesale motor industry. But it also serves individuals.