DHL plans $360 million expansion in Americas by 2022 to handle e-com boom

Express service provider DHL Express will spend $360 million between 2020 and 2022 to build new and expand existing facilities in the Americas as e-commerce volumes continue to drive unprecedented growth, the company said today.

Plantation, Florida-based DHL Express said it would also boost its Americas air network with new aircraft and additional routes like new, direct flights in key growth markets. In the air, DHL has already added 14 new company-owned Boeing 777F to its global fleet since 2019, and will now add an additional eight aircraft between 2022 and 2024.

Taken together, the investments will increase volume capacity in the DHL Express Americas network by nearly 30% by the end of 2022, the company said.

The investment comes as the company’s U.S. shipment volumes rise 41% between Q1 2020 and Q1 2021 due to expansion in both the business to consumer (B2C) and business to business (B2B) sectors. The entire region saw an average 33% more shipments per day in Q1 2021 as compared to the previous year, counting statistics from the U.S., Canada, Mexico, South and Central America, and the Caribbean.

“The growth in e-commerce shipment volumes will continue to put pressure on air cargo capacity in the industry, which has led to our continued investments in new dedicated aircraft and routes,” Mike Parra, CEO for DHL Express Americas, said in a release.

“Globalization has continued to show its resilience, fueled by digitalization and the power of global trade. With an ever increasing number of consumers shifting their shopping activities online, and the sharp rise in businesses selling their goods in the global marketplace, we need to continue the critical investments in our network infrastructure to meet the growth demands in international e-commerce and global trade,” Parra said.

Many of the infrastructure investments will focus on the company’s facilities, which include service centers for pickup and delivery operations, gateways that manage the international clearance of shipments, and hubs which operate as shipment transfer points to and from regions of the world, DHL said.

For example, an expanded state-of-the-art hub in Miami, Florida that is currently under construction will be the 6th-largest DHL Express hub globally by Time Definite International (TDI) volume.  And a new, 244,000 sq. ft. automated hub in Hamilton, Ontario (Canada) will be four times the size of the current one.

E-commerce is core to global trade and growing enormously. With our global brand campaign, we are highlighting our expertise in this sector, helping sellers “keep up with the clicks.” https://t.co/XX5AJLPdyE

— DPDHL News (@DeutschePostDHL) July 7, 2021