FedEx sets up new cargo hub

FedEx Express, the US-based package delivery firm, opened a new international express and cargo center in Shanghai on Monday to provide greater access to its global network for customers in eastern China, particularly those shipping goods to the United States and Europe.

The 134,000 square-meter FedEx Shanghai International Express and Cargo Hub, about eight times the size of its previous facility, is the largest of its kind at the Shanghai Pudong International Airport.

Currently, the US company has 66 weekly flights in and out of the cargo hub. Equipped with a fully automated sorting system, the new facility is able to process 36,000 packages and documents per hour.

"The Asia-Pacific region remains the growth driver of the world. This new hub adds yet another major facility to our already comprehensive regional and global network, giving our customers here reliable access to international markets," said David L Cunningham, president and CEO of FedEx Express.

According to the CEO, the facility is critically important as the Yangtze River Delta is a huge importer and exporter, and a major hub for this part of China.

"The facility will provide the ability to add additional flights into and out of China, and critically important with its transshipment capabilities. We can connect traffic from other markets into and around China, using this facility and its infrastructure," said Cunningham.

The two airports in Shanghai reported cargo and mail throughput of 4.24 million tons in 2017. The city is the third aviation hub in the world after Hong Kong and Memphis, boasting a cargo and mail throughput above 4 million tons, according to the Shanghai Airport Authority.

According to the Yangtze River Delta region express service development plan for the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20) period issued jointly by the postal administrations of Shanghai, Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces, the annual courier volumes of the region will reach 26.5 billion packages by 2020, taking up 38 percent of China's total. Revenue of the industry will reach 331.3 billion yuan by the same time, accounting for 42 percent of China's total.

"We have been part of China for a very long time …China is a very important market of FedEx since 1984. This latest facility is a demonstration of our long-term commitment, and of our relations to China's future growth with initiatives such as the Belt and Road Initiative," said the CEO.

In addition, the new hub is using state-of-the-art technologies and innovation to enhance operational efficiency and is equipped with a customer care center as well as cold chain facilities.

The cold chain center of the hub offers a full suite of high-standard cold chain logistics solutions tailored for various healthcare products such as medicines, semifinished medicines and pharmaceuticals, and will support the healthcare industry, one of the fastest-growing sectors in the Asia-Pacific region.