Mercedes-Benz dealer Orwell Truck & Van has opened a £1 million van showroom in Ipswich.

The new centre represents the latest in a series of high-profile investments made by parent company Imperial Holdings, since it acquired the manufacturer’s franchised partner for East Anglia in 2013.

Located at Martlesham Heath, it features a showroom with space for three vans, as well as offices on the ground and mezzanine floors.

Neil Jacob, managing director at Orwell Truck & Van, said: "The very substantial investment we have made in this outstanding facility underlines our determination to provide light commercial vehicle operators with the very finest customer service.

"It also demonstrates our confidence in, and commitment to, the future of the Mercedes-Benz Vans brand.”

The opening means that, as was already the case for their colleagues based in Newmarket and Norwich, Orwell Truck & Van’s Ipswich team have now secured Mercedes-Benz Van ProCenter accreditation.

This Europe-wide standard of excellence reflects the quality of the people the dealer employs and the procedures it operates as they relate to light commercial vehicles.

Mercedes-Benz Vans UK has made a record-breaking start to 2017, posting an 18% increase in vehicle registrations (8,813 vans) during the first quarter. In 2016 the brand recorded its seventh consecutive year of growth.

Orwell Truck & Van, which employs 200 people across its network of branches in Ipswich, Colchester, Newmarket and Norwich, sold 1,252 vans last year, a 16% increase on the previous 12 months.