UPS (NYSE: UPS) today announced the ground breaking of a new €160 million advanced-technology super hub in Hannover-Langenhagen at a ceremony attended by Dr. Bernd Althusmann, Lower Saxony Minister for Economic Affairs. once completed, the hub – one of UPS’s largest investments outside the United States – will serve as an important link in UPS’s European and German network and offer businesses improved access to the company’s smart global logistics network.

　　“The growth of business and retail e-commerce – with online retail sales alone expected to reach nearly €70 billion in Germany this year – has created unprecedented demand for UPS’s services,” said Frank Sportolari, president, UPS Germany. “E-commerce offers small and medium-sized businesses a platform to trade like micro-multinationals. Transforming our existing sorting and distribution hub in Hannover-Langenhagen will allow businesses of all sizes in Germany to reach new business customers and consumers worldwide, whether that’s in Seoul, San Francisco or Stuttgart.”

　　To support the Hannover-Langenhagen super hub’s role in UPS’s network, up to 500 new jobs will be created, both in operations and administrative functions. Advanced automation technology will allow UPS to double the sorting capacity of the facility – from 15,000 packages per hour to 30,000, with a separate processing flow being installed for bulky items.

　　“Logistics is one of the most important economic sectors and largest employers in Lower Saxony,” said Dr. Bernd Althusmann, Lower Saxony’s minister for Economic Affairs, Labour, Transport and Digitalization. “Langenhagen and Hannover are located in the middle of Germany and in the heart of Europe – a potential from which the logistics sector can profit like hardly any other location. The expansion of this UPS branch is thus a commitment to the business location of the Hannover region and at the same time a door opener for the export activities of local companies.”

　　The new hub will cover an area of 24,000 square meters – e to three soccer fields – once the second phase of construction is completed in 2023. Phase one of construction will involve a new building being erected alongside the existing facility, to be completed by the summer of 2021. Phase two will involve demolition of the existing sorting and distribution centre and the construction of a second building.

　　Supporting UPS to meet its global sustainability goals, the hub will be built to the German Sustainable Building Council’s (DGNB) Gold standard and will include the provisions to support future delivery fleet electrification. And to ensure that sustainability does not stop at the power socket, UPS in Germany is sourcing its electricity – for its facilities and electric delivery vehicles – exclusively from renewable sources.

　　The new facility is part of the company’s multi-year European investment plan, aimed at modernizing and expanding the UPS network across the continent. Investments in Germany as part of this program include new and upgraded hubs in Bielefeld, Herne and Nuremburg, complementing recent European super hubs in London, Paris and Eindhoven.