OCTOBER 11, 2014: Amazon's Gourock centre was celebrating its 10th birthday — after sending tens of millions of items around the world.

The Faulds Park plant opened in July 2004 with only 30 employees, and had grown to have several hundred.

The company would not disclose exactly how many people work at each site, but said 16 of the original Gourock team are still there.

Gourock was one of two ‘fulfilment centres’ in Scotland, eight in Britain and 20 across Europe that have helped to revolutionise the way we buy.

There are literally hundreds of thousands of items at Gourock, which specialises in supplying books, DVDs and CDs, rising to a few million by Christmas.

The first Gourock employees joined on 9 July 2004 and the first items were shipped on 14 August.

Amazon’s regional operations director was Nicola Sweeney of Port Glasgow, who was in charge of the internet giant’s Gourock, Dunfermline, Swansea and Peterborough operations.

Nicola joined the company after working with Playtex and said the Gourock site had seen various milestones, including the launch of iconic items like the Harry Potter books and the Kindle e-reader.

She said: “It’s a family affair here.

“We have countless family relations who work here together — parents, brothers, sisters and spouses, along with new family ties established where people meet at work, marry or live together and have their own Amazon family!”

Nicola said facilities for employees have improved at the plant over the years. She said: “We are always trying to improve the working environment.

“Shift patterns have been changed to four days on and three off, and this has proved popular.”

The Gourock Amazon plant would remain in the area until its closure was announced in January 2023, resulting in the axing of 300 local jobs.