Schenker plans further expansion in China this year and will also heavily in invest in its global contract logistics business.

Chairman Thomas Lieb told IFW he believed customer demand would grow strongly in both markets in 2011.

“In China, where our customers are moving from the coast more and more into the hinterland, we have plans to add 15 to 20 new locations to our network in the coming 12 months,” he said.

“And we are continuing our activities in the field of regular trains from China to Europe, in close co-operation with some of our big customers.”

As part of the company’s four-year Go for Growth contract logistics initiative, Schenker will also continue investing in globally standardised logistics solutions and industrial processes.

“The focus of the capital expenditures will be on the automotive, consumer, electronics industries and mid-sized machine makers in defined regions,” he said.

“The main target countries are the US, Germany and China. Our plan is to hire up to 200 additional experts for the programme.”

A further €250 million (US$331m) will be invested in Schenker’s global IT platform which Lieb said would start benefiting the air and ocean freight business by 2014-15.

“There is no standstill for any logistics service provider,” he added.

“Global presence is one of the major criteria for success in our industry and therefore we have to further extend and adjust our network, especially in growth markets.”

Source: ifw