DHL opens new South Asia hub in Singapore

By Lee Hyo-sik

DHL Express has opened its new South Asia hub in Singapore as part of its efforts to take advantage of the region’s growing cross-border trade.

The US$93 million facility, located in the Changi Airfreight Center (CAC) at Changi International Airport, is widely expected to bolster the multinational express service provider’s capacity to process the increasing number of mail and parcels moving to and from, or within, South Asia.

The hub, which operates 24 hours a day, is equipped with the industry’s first fully automated express parcel-sorting and -processing system in the region, according to company executives, who said it has boosted the firm’s operational capacity and efficiency, offering speedier delivery for customers.

“Over the years, we have invested significantly to bolster our network and services in the Asia-Pacific region,” DHL Express CEO Ken Allen said during a ceremony to mark the opening of the firm’s new logistics hub in the city state on Oct. 18.

“Our investment in DHL’s South Asia hub is the most recent in a series of global network investments made, and is the largest infrastructural investment in Singapore to date,” Allen said. “The country’s strategic location not only boosts our operational network capabilities, but also supports growing trade in the region aided by a stronger global economy.”

The CEO said the time is right for DHL Express to open the new logistics hub as it has recorded a strong growth in shipments in recent years, particularly in the southern part of the Asia-Pacific region. Between 2012 and 2015, the average daily shipments for Australia and New Zealand grew about 50 per cent and South Asia 30 per cent.

The new facility, built on a 23,600-square-metre site, is 33 per cent larger than the previous facility, providing the company with additional capacity to handle the growing volume of shipments with regional and international destinations.