UPS presents its new intelligent intermodal distribution center in Barcelona
UPS has presented in October its new distribution center in the city of barcelona, although the platform has been operational since October 2020 and for sanitary reasons it had not been able to be inaugurated to date. The hub has meant a cost of 40 million for the multinational, the largest investment made to date in Spain. the center, located in the ZAL of the port of BarcelonaIt is located near El Prat airport and, in the words of the company itself, “It is a direct window to international trade and its proximity to the rest of Europe favors its integration into the international distribution network and cross-border sales of local companies”. The merchandise is being distributed from the Catalan facilities to more than 220 destinations, both Spanish and European.
The new logistics center It has an extension of more than 24,000 square meters, which is equivalent to 3 football fields, and has a sorting capacity of up to 22,000 packages per hour, more than 2.5 times the capacity of its previous center located in L’Hospitalet de Llobregat (Barcelona). The CEO of UPS Spain and Portugal, Romina Lorenzowho has made his first public appearance after his appointment last September, has recognized the pride of being able to celebrate this type of inauguration. “With a value of 40 million euros, this investment represents an increase in the delivery capacities of UPS in our country and allows companies in Spain to connect with their international customers more quickly”Lawrence has stated.
Energy Efficiency Standards
The new platform has a novelty at a European level and is that it is the first UPS installation in Europe certified to comply with the LEED energy efficiency standards. In addition, it has the latest technology in parcel sorting which reduces energy consumption. One of UPS’s worldwide goals is to reduce the carbon footprint by 50% per package by the year 2035. Currently, the new center in Barcelona has photovoltaic panels on its roof, which supply electricity for self-consumption.
Regarding energy efficiency, Daniel Carrera, President of the UPS European Regionhas pointed out that “This investment is also an opportunity to advance in the commitment to reduce the environmental impact of operations”. Carrera has also recorded the efforts of the company and its collaborators to continue innovating in this area, and has detailed that UPS already has the first two duo-trailers in the European UPS network that connect Madrid and Barcelona on a daily basis.
UPS Premier with cold control
Regarding the provision of transport vehicles, the UPS platform has 56 truck docks that, in the future, may be expanded to 61. In addition, the interior of the warehouse allows up to 140 delivery vans to be served. These voluminous figures mean that the current workforce rises to 180 people, divided into two daily work shifts. The Barcelona ZAL hub has incorporated a new express service, UPS Premier, designed for all those goods that need temperature control throughout the transit process.[1]door (between 15 and -25ºC). This type of shipment is initially intended for merchandise from the pharmaceutical sector. It should be noted that, during the pandemic, UPS was in charge of distributing more than 1,000 million vaccines against COVID-19, always maintaining their correct temperature throughout the distribution process.
Intermodal and intelligent logistics chains
During the event has also been present Katie Stana, Consul General of the United States in Barcelonawhich has stressed the importance of trade relations between the United States and Spain. “This inauguration is an important milestone. It demonstrates the strength of the economic alliance between Spain and the United States. Trade between our countries is strong, and it is in our hands to make it even stronger. Together, we can create many opportunities, like this one”Stana has assured.
The deputy general director of planning of the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda, Juan Pedro Fernández Palominohighlighted that the inauguration of this hub is a boost to commit to intermodal and intelligent logistics chains and added that “This inauguration is a success story of public-private collaboration in the field of logistics and transport. The UPS company is a worldwide benchmark in the package and cargo transportation sector. Its exponential growth is noteworthy, from a courier service to becoming an air, land and maritime provider of electronic services with distribution centers like this new hub in Barcelona, which demonstrates its commitment to technological solutions and the environment”.
Necessary platform for SMEs
The commitment to the growth of small and medium-sized companies has been one of the concepts discussed during the presentation and the representatives have assured that this new center is a necessary tool for SMEs, since it helps them to expand internationally in a world that is increasingly globalized and improving the cross-border network. To discuss this topic in more depth, Jordi Marzà, director of operations of Alohas, has been present to explain his success story with UPS as a logistics operator. Alohas, the sustainable ecommerce that works on demand, details that 55% of its sales are made to the US, 30% to the UK and the rest to other parts of the world. Marzà, during his speech, assured that thanks to UPS they managed to continue with their business in Europe and the US during the pandemic. The logistics operator helped them continue with the distribution of all their merchandise to all their destinations.