DHL to build Shanghai hub
DHL Express is to set up an £85m parcels hub at Shanghai Pudong airport.
The development of the North Asia Hub is part of DHL’s hub and spoke regional air network strategy.
John Mullen, chief executive of DHL Express, said: “The Shanghai hub will strengthen our regional as well as global network, enabling DHL to continuously meet and exceed our customers’ expectations towards transit times and handling capabilities. The development of a new DHL Express North Asia Hub in Shanghai is also proof of our strong commitment and confidence in this dynamic region.”
The North Asia Hub will also be equipped with an automated sorting system with capacity to sort conveyable shipments to a peak capacity of up to 20,000 parcels and 20,000 documents per hour.
DHL already has gateways in Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai and Shenzen, and it currently runs more than 500 commercial and dedicated flights per week in and out of China.
The hub will include a quality control centre to monitor all shipments in the air and on the ground. Quality control centre also serve as a nerve centre for crisis management.
In June, DHL Express completed a strategic partnership transaction with air cargo carrier Polar Air, in which DHL Express holds a 49 per cent stake; in September, DHL Express and Lufthansa Cargo also established a joint cargo airline.
These partnerships, effective from late-2008 and April 2009 respectively, are designed to enable DHL to meet the anticipated increase in demand for cargo space between Asia Pacific and Europe as well as the US.
