DHL Express Invests €123M in State-of-the-Art Logistics Center

DHL Express has officially opened its new, environmentally friendly logistics center at the Cologne-Bonn Airport.

Check Out These Resources

• Do you need a business bank account for your online business? Take a look at our review of the five best bank accounts for sellers, some of which are free with no minimum balance or deposits. ^[sponsored]
• Boost your social media engagement with Publer. Learn how you can save time writing engaging content faster with AI. ^[sponsored]
• Could your online business use capital for growth? Here is a primer on revenue-based loans, and how they work.

The new 15,000-square-meter hub features cutting edge sorting technology and an innovative system to heat and cool the warehouse (12,000 m²) and offices (3,000 m²).

In cooperation with Cologne-Bonn Airport, DHL Express is using a huge ice-energy-storage solution with over 1.3 million liters holding capacity and 18 kilometers of piping. This ensures the hub stays cool in the summer and warm in the winter.

Combined with a heat pump and solar panels on the roof, the solution is entirely emissions free.

“Since its founding 50 years ago, DHL has time and again made its mark with innovative solutions, and powered the rapid evolution of the Express industry as a whole. The many new technologies at our Cologne hub are just one more example of this, and it shows the basis of our new Strategy 2025 as well. As the experts in export and import, we can only grow by ensuring top quality, which is why we invest more than a billion euros each year in employee training, infrastructure and digitalization.”

 

John Pearson, CEO, DHL Express 

Expediting the Process in a High-Tech Facility

DHL completed the upgrade of its air hub at Cologne-Bonn Airport in August 2019 following a two-year building and renovation phase.

In the hub’s sorting center, several new technologies allow DHL Express to process up to 20,000 shipments per hour on its 2.5 kilometer long conveyor belt.

A number of other additions, including 3D scanners and vacuum lifters, help make life easier for the hub’s 340 employees, who hail from 34 different countries.

DHL Express is the most international company. With a presence in over 220 countries and territories, it transports over 400 million shipments per year.

Twenty-three hubs worldwide form the backbone of the DHL Express network, which includes over 260 dedicated aircraft, 17 partner airlines, and a capacity for over 3,000 flights daily to over 500 airports.

The company announced last year its plans to add 14 new Boeing 777 aircraft to its own fleet.

What are your thoughts on DHL’s state-of-the-art hub?

Please use the comments section below or head over to our Facebook Group for Small Business Sellers and interact with other small business owners.

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn to stay up to date with relevant news and business insights for your online business.

READ MORE: DHL Express Rates Will Go Up an Average of 5.9% for 2020