UPS inaugurated a 'superhub' in Eindhoven on Thursday. Total cost: 130 million euros. Never before has the carrier invested so much in a European facility. At the new location, UPS aims to serve a growing target group: small businesses and female exporters.
Eighteen months ago, UPS started construction on Achtsteweg Noord in Eindhoven. A building with a surface area of 27,000 square metres now stands.
The DC is almost fully automated. The sorting facility processes 29,000 parcels per hour. That number can be increased to 40,000 parcels per hour. Some 300 warehouse workers work in the premises, 150 people per shift. "This is a gamechanger for UPS," Jim O'Gara, President UPS West Europe, told us at the opening of the site. "The distribution centre is designed for future growth."
European investment programme
The sorting centre at Achtsteweg Noord in Eindhoven is part of a €2 billion European investment programme. Much of that money has gone to the Netherlands, says Nando Cesarone, President UPS International Operations. The US-based transport company came to the Netherlands 30 years ago and now has 16 branches here. Never before has it invested 130 million euros in a Dutch location. "This place is about more than just sorting, it provides better connectivity to the rest of Europe."
Small businesses, women entrepreneurs
During the opening, UPS delegates spoke several times about an 'all inclusive approach'. The company wants to grow and it can only do so by involving everyone. Cesarone: "A lot of people think UPS is only there for the big companies. Instead, we want to give smaller companies access to a global market and strengthen their competitive position as suppliers and trading partners of multinationals." Only 5 per cent of small companies in Europe now use the opportunity to sell globally. "Then we are talking about a huge untapped potential, for them and for us."
UPS is focusing on female entrepreneurs in the coming years. The company hopes to support three million women to export their products by 2021. "Businesses run by women who export are on average 3.5 times more productive than businesses run by women entrepreneurs who do not export. It's an investment that pays off for all of us. Women can ensure that global GDP increases by $28 trillion annually by 2025," concludes
