DHL has announced the opening of a new 13,000 sq.m facility in Fradley Park, near Birmingham, UK, that is expected to meet capacity requirements for suppliers and manufacturers for the next 5-10 years.
The expansion of the Hams Hall facility doubles DHL Supply Chain’s capability in the Midlands region of the UK and forms part of the company’s 50-year old transport network dedicated to the automotive industry.
“The benefit of the network is that it negates the need for customers to commit to a dedicated and fixed supply chain network and it gives them the flexibility to reduce or expand as desired or required,” said DHL in response to questions from Automotive Logistics.
A fleet of 71 new Euro 6 vehicles will also be introduced into the network, according to the company.
The new site, which included a £10m ($12.5m) property investment, supports four major OEMs with direct UK and EU plant deliveries and an additional ten tier one suppliers, according to the company.
While not named specifically, an example is Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), which counts DHL Supply Chain as its principal lead logistics provider.
As reported by Automotive Logistics earlier this year, the company manages the collection and delivery of European-wide components to JLR’s UK plants and carries out receiving and line feeding at its three assembly plants.
