DPD Germany has massively expanded its parcel depot in Essen to double its parcel sorting capacity in the future and serve more cities in the Ruhr area, thanks to an investment of €8.5 million.
Initially, the company will be handling around 50,000 parcels per day with the aim to increase the capacity to 70,000 parcels a day which is approximately twice the volume that the depot could handle in the past.
The extension work at the Essen depot began in November 2014 and continued during normal operations at the facility. In early May this year, two additional sorting halls and a new unloading section came on stream. Thus, around 10,000 parcels can now be handled in Essen every hour, compared to only 6,000 previously.
As a result of the capacity expansion, DPD will be able to serve considerably more towns in the Ruhr area from Essen, with Oberhausen and Bottrop being added on 2 May and large parts of Gelsenkirchen as well as Velbert and Hattingen to be added from September this year. Currently, the facility serves, apart from Essen, the cities of Bochum, Mülheim an der Ruhr, Herne and Gladbeck. It employs around 250 staff.
"DPD is seeing very strong growth rates, especially due to the booming online trade", said regional managing director Dr. Jörg Schmeidler. "After the extension works, we are now well-prepared for future growth. Therefore, we consider the investment of €8.5 million as a long-term commitment to Essen and to the jobs at this location."
DPD Germany has a nationwide network of 76 depots and 6,000 Pickup parcel shops. It employs 8,000 staff and 9,000 delivery drivers shipping around 350 million parcels every year.
