DHL Express has invested €170m (US$195m) in its new and sustainable international hub at Paris-Charles de Gaulle (CDG) Airport, France.
The facility’s sorting system, which represents €45m (US$52m) of DHL’s investment, has a processing capacity of 38,000 shipments per hour – 15 times more than the previous facility. Nearly 720 employees, including almost 239 new recruits, will be running the 32,000m2 center around the clock. For customers in the Paris region, this new CDG location already means a substantial one-hour time saving on their deliveries and pickups.
To align with Deutsche Post DHL Group’s zero-emission target for 2050, the 91,000m² site will include LED lighting with motion detectors, a sorting system with IE4 high-efficiency motors, and energy-efficient air conditioning. DHL is moving toward its intermediate objective of making 70% of its deliveries with green transportation by 2025. To this end, it currently has more than 100 clean vehicles and delivers more than 50 city centers with zero-emission solutions. It is also developing on-demand deliveries, collaborative deliveries by bike or on foot, consignments and Relais Colis service points.
While the company has invested €80m ($92m) in its French infrastructures over the last six years, this new site represents DHL Express’s largest investment in Europe in recent years. The construction work began in March 2020 and took a total of 20 months. Now up and running, the location is prepared to absorb the growth of the next 10 years, with an option for further expansion.
John Pearson, CEO of DHL Express, explained, “The DHL Express hub at Paris-Charles de Gaulle airport will play a key role in our international network. This is the fourth largest hub in our European network in terms of size and parcel processing volume, after Leipzig, East Midlands and Brussels. It is one of our 23 hubs around the world, 12 of which are in Europe. The new facility is another step toward fulfilling our mission – connecting people, improving lives. Our agility, supported by the strength of our global network and the commitment of our teams, has enabled us to deliver more than one billion doses of Covid-19 vaccines to more than 160 countries. With ultramodern infrastructures fitted at Paris-Charles de Gaulle and our presence in 220 countries around the world, we have all the tools needed to meet the new challenges of an increasingly connected world.”
