UPS has opened a brand new £120m package sorting and delivery facility at the DP World London Gateway Logistics Park 25 miles east of central London. The new 32,000 square metre facility was officially opened by the Transport secretary Chris Grayling MP.
The new hub will operate as a UK package processing hub and distribution centre for the local area as well as a gateway to UPS’s global logistics network, with capacity to process up to 28,000 packages per hour and room for further expansion. 500 employees will be located at the the new operations hub, which apparently boasts more than four miles of conveyor belts and advanced package scanning and sortation equipment.
This state-of-the-art facility enables us to further improve our services to companies of all sizes that are looking to grow their cross-border business. With strong growth in our export volume in the UK, which increased nearly 20% in 2017 and more than 15% in the first quarter of 2018, we are optimistic about the future. This key investment is tangible proof of UPS’s commitment to helping customers doing business in and with the UK.
– Mark Vale, president for UPS UK, Ireland and Nordics
The new facility is part of UPS’s $2 billion infrastructure investment as it expands its operations in Europe and was described by Grayling as a “vote of confidence” in the UK economy.
It’s always welcome to hear of significant investments in the UK economy and this will also be a valuable employer in the area. And, especially in the face of Brexit, it’s good that companies continue to expand operations here but its also something of a gamble as the exact details of the Brexit deal remain unclear. A European hub in London may not necessarily be the best choice for a company looking to service customers across the European Union. But we’ll soon find out.
