UPS is building a new sustainable distribution centre in Germany, adding 30,000 packages per hour to its sorting capacity by 2023.
The shipping giant has begun work on the new 24,000 square metre hub in Hannover-Langenhagen, which it expects will employ up to 500 new staff
The first phase of construction is scheduled to take place between now and summer 2021, involving the construction of a new building. The second phase, taking place from then until 2023 will involve demolishing the existing centre on the site and constructing a second new building.
UPS will later add automation technology, which will double the capacity of the site to 30,000 packages per hour.
The site will comply with the German Sustainable Building Council’s Gold sustainability standard. Electricity will be sourced exclusively from renewable sources.
Frank Sportolari, president of UPS Germany, said: “The growth of business and retail e-commerce – with online retail sales alone expected to reach nearly €70 billion in Germany this year – has created unprecedented demand for UPS’s services.
“Ecommerce offers small and medium-sized businesses a platform to trade like micro-multinationals. Transforming our existing sorting and distribution hub in Hannover-Langenhagen will allow businesses of all sizes in Germany to reach new business customers and consumers worldwide, whether that’s in Seoul, San Francisco or Stuttgart.”
UPS is investing heavily in Europe as it looks to modernise and expand its network on the continent. In Germany, UPS also plans to add new and upgraded hubs in Bielefeld, Herne and Nuremburg.
