DHL Express has unveiled new investments totalling more than €100 million, including a C$100 million (€69 million) expansion at Hamilton International Airport near Toronto, Canada, a new €31 million facility in Berlin, Germany, and new depots in Spain.
The international express company announced yesterday plans to invest C$100 million (€69 million) in a new gateway facility at John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport, which lies about 80km south-west of Toronto, to replace a smaller existing one to meet double-digit growth in shipment volumes.
The new facility, which will be four times the size of the current one at 200,000 square feet (18,580 sqm), will feature a fully-automated sorting system with capacity to process 15,000 packages per hour, and will create new jobs in addition to the current 225 employees.
“Hamilton International Airport offers us the benefits that we need to meet our growing demands in handling capacity,” said Andrew Williams, CEO of DHL Express Canada. “With 24-hour landing capability, dedicated onsite Canada Border Services Agency representation and the ability to grow in the future with a partner positioned to become the cargo hub of Ontario, we know this is the best decision to continue leading the market.”
The current Hamilton Gateway, opened in 2008, is already the largest gateway for DHL Express in Canada by volume, handling 60% of its total shipments in the country. Two daily flights to the Cincinnati Americas hub connect Hamilton to the worldwide network.
DHL Express Canada, with other gateways in Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Brampton, Montreal and Mirabel, has invested more than C$30 million over the last four years to increase its fleet and aviation capacity, along with expanding its facilities in Edmonton and Winnipeg.
Most recently, the company doubled its capacity at Vancouver International Airport and launched a new direct flight from Cincinnati, increasing air capacity by 40%. This was also in response to double-digit shipment growth generated from growing international trade, specifically between the U.S. and Canada.
Separately, DHL Express Germany yesterday symbolically laid the foundation stone for a new €31 million facility in Berlin that will double its current operational space.
The new 7,000 sqm facility in Tempelhof, which will lie on a 20,000 plot of land, is due to go into operation in autumn 2020 and will provide sufficient capacity for the next decade. It will feature a sorting system with capacity to process 6,000 shipments/hour and loading doors for 120 vehicles. Some 280 employees will work at the new site.
DHL Express Germany chief Markus Reckling said: “With the new building we are nearly doubling our capacity in Berlin. We will achieve shorter handling times and thus improve processes for the benefit of our customers.
“Moreover, the location close to the city centre will reduce the overall number of kilometres for deliveries and make it easier to use vehicles with alternative power-drives,” he pointed out.
The new Berlin facility is part of large-scale ongoing investments by DHL Express in Germany, including new or modernised locations in Dresden, Neumünster, Leipzig, Hamburg, Hanover, Nuremberg and Stuttgart.
Earlier this month, DHL Express continued its investments in Spain. The company opened a new €3.5 million depot in Hernani, close to San Sebastian in the northern province of Gipuzkoa. The 3,700 sqm facility, with capacity to sort up to 4,000 items/hour, will improve coverage of the surrounding region and will improve connections to DHL’s recently expanded regional air hub at Vitoria Airport.
DHL Express Spain also announced it will invest €4.7 million in a new hub at Zaragoza in the province of Aragon in north-east Spain. The new 2,000 sqm building, with capacity to process 3,000 items/hour, is due to open in 2021 and will lie close to DHL’s existing large logistics facility in the city’s logistics park.
