An Atlanta-based real estate development and acquisition company next month plans to start building Memphis’ first speculative industrial space in more than decade, the company announced Wednesday.

Robinson Weeks Partners will construct a 421,470-square-foot warehouse called Memphis Global Crossing. The site is at the southeast corner of Distriplex Farms Drive and Global Drive inside the Dristriplex Farms planned development.

“Memphis is on the rise with tremendous opportunities in the industrial market,’’ David Welch, president of Robinson Weeks Partners, said in a prepared statement. “With vacancy rates near 15-year lows and strong market fundamentals, we are very bullish on Memphis. We look forward to expanding our presence in this market.”

Robinson Weeks Partners bought the 24 acres from Prologis. The property was the final piece of the Denver-based Prologis portfolio in Memphis, according to Hank Martin of NAI Saig Co. Martin represented Prologis in the sale.

Prologis had been one of the largest investors in Memphis industrial real estate since the 1990s, Martin said.

Commercial Advisors will handle the leasing for Memphis Global Crossing.

Kemp Conrad

“There is pent-up demand for a new, modern, Class A logistics facility in Memphis proper and Robinson Weeks has designed the perfect envelope to attract an employer to this site,” Kemp Conrad, principal of Cushman & Wakefield | Commercial Advisors, said in a release.

The site is 2.5 miles from the BNSF intermodal facility, eight miles from the FedEx hub at Memphis International Airport and two miles from U.S. 78 (Lamar Avenue).

Hank Martin

The proximity to the FedEx hub will make the site especially appealing to companies that want to take advantage of the latest deadlines FedEx allows to get a shipment to its destination the next morning, NAI Saig’s Martin said.

“The closer you are to the hub, they have zones,’’ Martin said. “Those zones tell you what time you can ship out of Memphis. I think this zone has like an 11 (p.m.) cut-off time to be shipped. So if you are ordering something online at 9 (p.m.) in California you can have it there the next morning.’’

Memphis has done a better job lately offering incentives to compete with North Mississippi’s fast-growing industrial market, Martin said.

Mississippi still may have a “small advantage’’ for some, but not all, users.

“Quite frankly, from internet sales, retail sales, all those overnight sales, this site is actually a better site than those Mississippi sites,’’ Martin said.

He noted that Amazon chose to locate its facilities in Memphis rather than North Mississippi “because of overnight shipping.’’

Memphis Global Crossing will offer 32-foot clear height with cross-dock loading and 185-foot truck courts. The building also will have 124 trailer parking spaces, 204 auto parks and 127 dock doors to serve distributors and e-commerce fulfillment users.

“This is yet another great signal of the momentum we’re enjoying in Memphis,” Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland said in a prepared statement. “It’s further proof that Greater Memphis’ energies are back within our city limits, and more and more companies are seeing the opportunity for growth in our city.”

ARCO Design/Build is the general contractor for the project with The Reaves Firm providing civil engineering services.