UPS is investing 112 million euros in the new distribution centre in Eindhoven, which is due to be completed next year. It is the largest investment in the Netherlands of the American company. The investment is part of more than 1.7 billion euros that the company will invest in Europe in the coming years. The construction of the new sorting and distribution facility in Eindhoven is expected to create around 200 jobs.
Today (Friday, November 10), reaching the highest point of the construction site was celebrated with a ceremony. UPS opts for Eindhoven because of its convenient location; Belgium is only a stone’s throw away and Cologne, where UPS has the largest branch in Europe, is easily accessible from Eindhoven. But that is not the only reason why the American parcel service has chosen Eindhoven. “It is a fast-growing region, even faster than Rotterdam and Amsterdam. We believe that this centre will be able to contribute to this growth”, says Tim Helsen, country manager UPS Nederland. “We expect that we need about 200 new people to run the new centre properly. Not only logistics staff, but also engineers, marketeers and managers. And we hope to find those people here in this smart region.”
Mayor John Jorritsma unveiled the cornerstone in a tent specially erected for the ceremony on the building site. “Eindhoven is more than just a location, we are making our presence felt in health, energy and mobility. And it is precisely this mobility to which UPS can make a great contribution. We as a municipality want to challenge them, to make use of the possibilities that are already here, but also to think along with other solutions for the future.”
We want to challenge UPS to take advantage of the opportunities that already exist here, but also to think along with other solutions for the future.John Jorritsma, Mayor of Eindhoven
Nando Cesarone, President of UPS Europe, is ready for the job: “We realise that we have a responsibility, we want to grow and become more efficient. But we also need to think about the climate. There is still a lot of profit to be gained here, especially if you look at co2 reduction. In Europe, but certainly in the Netherlands, there are still many opportunities, in this region you have everything. Engineers, technicians and all the knowledge needed for automation. The new centre will become a state of the art facility where we can process more than 29,000 parcels per hour, this can even be extended to 50,000 per hour.”
Chris Vanhoegaerden explains that they are not afraid that the automation will cost jobs at UPS. “It’s not that all of a sudden drones will deliver all parcels. Changes like this occur very slowly. Yes, we are testing drones, but on a very small scale. In Uganda, for example, in remote areas where an aircraft cannot land, we have delivered vaccines with drones. It works there. But elsewhere, however, we can work much more efficiently with traditional transport. In the future, drones may well be able to deliver packets. I do not believe that people are disappearing completely out of sight. Innovation is mainly about efficiency, but that does not have to be at the expense of people.”
Once completed, the Eindhoven site has an area of more than 5 football pitches and the surrounding area, for the transport of goods and lorries, is more than 27,000 square metres. The new building has more than 100 loading and unloading areas, nearly 100 truck parking spaces and is equipped with UPS automated parcel sorting technology. There will also be a car wash and workshop to provide the trucks and vans with the necessary maintenance. Once construction is complete, UPS will employ approximately 550 people in Eindhoven.
