UPS expands China footprint with new facilities in Chengdu and Shanghai

Transportation and logistics bellwether UPS announced this week that it opened up two new China-based contract logistics distribution facilities in Chengdu and Shanghai as part of its commitment to serve the growing domestic Chinese market.

UPS officials said that with these additions the company now has more than 130 distribution facilities in 87 cities in China, adding that these facilities will provide distribution and warehousing services for shippers to reach customers in China. And they added that these facilities are part of the company’s plans to develop a national distribution network in China and boost its international service offerings as well.

“The opening of the newest UPS supply chain facilities in China demonstrate UPS’s commitment to this rapidly growing and expanding domestic Chinese market,” said Alan Amling, UPS director of global logistics and distribution marketing, in an interview. “The Chengdu and Shanghai facilities will provide distribution and warehousing solutions to support both urbanization and inland growth in China, helping UPS customers to meet the growing demand resulting from China’s emerging middle class. These facilities are part of a longer term plan developed in 2011 to expand infrastructure and capabilities in China.”

Amling said that with the addition of these facilities, UPS is well positioned to help customers meet the increasing domestic demands in growing interior and coastal Chinese markets, explaining that shippers will benefit from UPS’s trustworthy and reliable service, proven logistics methods, industry-leading technology solutions, global multi-modal transportation network and decades of experience in the Chinese market.

The Chengdu and Shanghai facilities, he said, are capable of supporting the supply chain needs of a diverse spectrum of industries including high-tech, industrial manufacturing, aerospace and retail and will primarily focus on warehousing and distribution services while offering integrated transportation capabilities from the 114 UPS small package and freight forwarding operating facilities in China.

“The new facilities will also bring advanced technology and enhanced resources and services to customers looking for ways to distribute their products to the rapidly growing B2B and B2C markets in China,” he said.

UPS currently employs more than 6,000 people throughout China, most of who are Chinese locals, according to Amling. These new multi-client facilities are staffed according to the different scope of work and activities required by UPS’s various customers.

The Chengdu facility is comprised of more than 47,000 square feet of warehousing and distribution space and is located 2.5 miles from the Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport, which UPS said facilitates convenient access to major foreign markets and is in close proximity to major interstate roads, putting two-thirds of China’s Southwest population within a day’s drive.

The Shanghai facility is comprised of more than 70,000 square feet of distribution space and is less than two miles from the UPS International Hub at Shanghai’s Pudong Airport, China’s largest airport by air cargo volume, said UPS, adding that it is designed to meet the needs of multinational companies looking to increase their business operations in the domestic Shanghai market.

“UPS’s established network, sophisticated technologies, facilities and our trade management expertise give companies a distinct business advantage in Asia’s emerging markets and China,” said Brendan Canavan, President UPS Asia Pacific Region, in a statement.