The Palletways Group, Europe’s largest and fastest growing express palletised freight network, has expanded its services in Germany with the unveiling of a new regional and international hub to the south of the country.
The opening in Neufahrn, near Munich, is Palletways’ second hub in Germany and follows a successful opening in Hessian Knüllwald-Remsfeld and after having established a regional hub for the Rhine/Ruhr area in Nijmegen/NL. The new regional hub in Neufahrn will also handle international cargo and is expected to accelerate general cargo traffic to consignors in southern Germany and provide faster routing and better value to customers across southern Europe.
Consignors in nearby Austria, Italy and Spain are set to benefit from a more direct connection, with transit time expected to be shortened by a day on average.
A regional hub in the south-east offers many opportunities for Palletways Germany, with at least up to 20 network members already situated in the Bavarian region. Thanks to the new hub, members no longer need to travel to the central hub in Hessian Knüllwald-Remsfeld for collections and deliveries, driving significant reductions in cost and travel time. As of September 2017, seven network members are connected directly to Neufahrn, with more expected to follow soon.
The new regional hub will be fully supported by Palletways’ award winning IT platform and customer service operation, enabling real time visibility of all consignments throughout their journey.
Dave Walmsley, Managing Director of Palletways UK, said: “This investment is important because it provides additional capacity across the network, which is critical to our members and customers in the United Kingdom and across Europe. It gives us the foundation for further growth as the network continues to expand across Europe.”
Luis Zubialde, chief operating officer for the Palletways Group, said: “This investment has meant that deliveries to the south of Germany and southern Europe are now more accessible and cost-effective with Palletways.
“It gives us the foundation for further growth as the network continues to expand across Europe. At the same time, this is a clear signal that Palletways has firmly established itself in German and European markets and continues to develop successfully.”
In addition to the three regional hubs now in operation, last year Palletways Germany unveiled a transhipment base in the Dutch city of Nijmegen where members can offer customers palletised freight to Belgium, the Netherlands, United Kingdom, Ireland and France with much improved service levels, offering significantly better value. With this new investment, the Palletways Group will have invested over 10 million Euros into the German network since establishing its main central hub in Homberg in 2011. Employee numbers have also grown, from 18 in 2011 to approximately 70 currently.
Palletways’ pan-European network continues to grow strongly. Today it handles up to 45,000 pallets across Europe every day and cross border volume growth has grown by 10% over the last 12 months. The company has recently invested in new hubs including Lodz (Poland), Avonmouth (UK), Jaen (Spain), Knüllwald-Remsfeld (Germany) and expanded existing facilities in Zaragoza (Spain) and Milan (Italy).
