DHL Express, a market leader in the international express and logistics industry, has seen significant trade growth in the Kwazulu-Natal region over the last five years, resulting in the company further investing in the area and opening a new Durban Station facility – a fixed base for receiving, sorting, re-weighing and transporting of parcels to their intended destinations.

Norman George, DHL Express Director of Operations for Southern Africa, says that this trade growth has resulted in the volume of parcels outgrowing the capabilities of the previous station located in Berea. He says that the establishment of this Station is a positive sign for the region and highlights the potential for trade in Durban.

According to Trade & Investment KwaZulu-Natal, the province is home to two of Africa’s busiest and largest ports, Durban and Richards Bay, as well as King Shaka International Airport, thereby providing a key competitive advantage for the area. The region also boasts one of the highest export propensity and level of industrialisation in the country.

George adds that Durban is a popular document shipping area due to the harbours in the area, as well as a large import express region. “Durban harbour is the biggest harbour in Africa and we therefore receive a significant amount of documents from various shipping companies for the processing of the containers coming into Durban. We are however seeing an increase in parcel business as the industry develops and we expect an upward trend in both document and parcel business in the future. We have therefore invested in this world class infrastructure to provide great service to our customers at every stage of the industry growth curve.”

George says that the new Station, located in Riverhorse Valley, will be fully automated and make use of a drive-in model, thereby maximising productivity and increasing the volume of parcels processed daily to ensure faster delivery of shipments to customers. 

“The new Station’s capacity will enable DHL to increase the amount of packages that were previously processed per hour. The new system is equipped to handle a double digit increase in parcels processed per hour,  and will allow further growth of up to triple digits if required.”

The new Station’s location will ensure that the facility remains in the business hub in Durban. “Many businesses are choosing to locate closer to the area surrounding the new King Shaka International Airport, and we wanted to ensure that we were well positioned to meet the increasing needs and demands of our clients,” says George.

The new Durban Station will also become DHL’s flagship station in Africa, and a number of stations in Sub-Saharan Africa will be modelled on the this station going forward.

DHL Express is confident that the region will only continue to grow in the coming years, concludes George.