DPD has invested £3.7m (€4.3m) in four new depots in the UK, creating 125 new jobs, in order toexpand its capacity to cope with rising B2C volumes.
The multi-million investment in the new depots in Sheffield, Snetterton (Norfolk), Billingham(Teesside) and Smethwick (Midlands) is part of DPD’s £175m (€205m) UK expansion programme,announced in November 2012, which involves the construction of a total of 10 depots over thefollowing 15 months, as well as scanner technology and IT upgrades.
DPD UK CEO Dwain McDonald commented: “Our B2C parcel business has grown significantly in thelast few years – making DPD the fastest growing parcel company in the UK. The popularity of ourPredict service helped us win over £70m of new business from online retailers last year and we willcontinue to plough that back into the business to ensure our technology, infrastructure and serviceare the best in the market.”
“Our new purpose-built depots give us a huge advantage in terms of vehicle access and sortertechnology, meaning we can increase the number of parcels we handle and service more routes costeffectively. This scale of investment in infrastructure, technology and people is key to ensuringthat we continue to provide top quality service to customers now and in the future.”
The new €1.4m depot in Snetterton, a state-of-the-art 3,345 sqm facility, is to increase DPD’s capacity across East Anglia and will create up to 45 new jobs. It replaces DPD’s two depots inThetford while its distribution area has been extended to also cover Ipswich and Felixstowe throughan additional 45 new routes.
DPD’s second new €1.4m depot, located in Sheffield, consolidates DPD’s existing facilitiesin Sheffield and Barnsley. The 3,345 sqm site features the latest sorter technology and will createfive new jobs.
In Billingham, DPD invested €0.9m in a depot with a total of 2,416 sqm which will cover 55new routes and create up to 30 new jobs once it is fully operational. The company’s Smethwickdepot, which has been developed at DPD’s Roebuck Lane site through a €0.6m investment, is expectedto create some 45 new jobs and improve services for customers in the Midlands.
In May 2013, DPD already announced its plans to build a £100m (€117m) parcel hub in the EastMidlands as part of its UK expansion programme. The new hub is set to become the largest of itskind in Europe and creating up to 1,000 new full-time jobs in the region. DPD UK employs 6,700people, operates more than 3,000 vehicles from over 40 locations and delivers 1.6 million parcelsper week.
