DB Schenker has reorganized its range of contract logistics services in Spain. Schenker Logistics España S.L. and Schenker Industrial Logistics Iberica merged in early 2009 to form the new company Schenker High Tech Logistics, S.L., headquartered in Madrid. Now under one management, the team of around 90 employees at the company’s seven sites in Madrid, Barcelona, Leganés, Alcalá, Ourense, Girona and Getafe are ready to provide optimal solutions to the specific demands of international customers in the pan-European high-tech environment.

“As part of the DB Schenker network, the new Spanish company is able to offer and successfully implement integrated customized solutions for customers’ logistics requirements throughout the world,” said Axel Frings, Managing Director of Schenker Industrial Logistics GmbH. “Our solution expertise in the Iberian logistics market is currently unrivaled.”

Having completed logistics projects for well-known high-tech/electronics, industrial and clean tech customers, Schenker High Tech Logistics, S.L. boasts a range of references for demanding and complex logistics solutions for the European high-tech industry.

ProLogis announced it has leased approximately 215,000 square feet (20,000 square meters) of newly developed distribution space in Wroclaw, Poland, to Acer, a leading global manufacturer of computer systems including the brands Acer, Gateway, Packard Bell and eMachines.

Acer will occupy the space at ProLogis Park Wroclaw III and plans to use the facility as an international distribution center, providing spare parts and light manufacturing services to its customers throughout Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The facility will bring approximately 200 new jobs to the area. This is the first lease agreement between Acer and ProLogis.

ProLogis Park Wroclaw III comprises four buildings with a total of approximately 1.45 million square feet (135,000 square meters). In addition to Acer, ProLogis customers at the park include Curylo Asterix, DHL, Emperia Holding, Intercars, Jees Polska, Pol Mat, Selena, Sonoco Poland and Uldo.

With a 23.4-million-square-foot (2.2-million-square-meter) portfolio, ProLogis is one of the largest providers of distribution space in Poland. The company owns and manages four distribution parks in the Wroclaw area comprising approximately four million square feet (371,000 square meters).

UPS announced a new joint venture headquartered in Dubai to coordinate management and growth of UPS express package, freight forwarding and contract logistics services across the Middle East, Turkey and portions of Central Asia.

UPS will have a majority stake in the new joint venture that will acquire the small package operations of Unsped Paket Servisi San ve Ticaret A.S., its existing service agent in Turkey. Specific terms of the deal were not disclosed. Leadership of the new venture will come from Unsped CEO Haluk Undeger, who has grown the operation in Turkey to be UPS's largest service contractor. Undeger will also own a minority share in the new joint venture. Closing is expected to occur in the next 30 days, subject to the satisfaction of customary conditions.

"This emerging area covers trade to and from 21 countries* where UPS is experiencing increased demand," said Dan Brutto, president of UPS International. "We're tapping the business acumen Haluk Undeger has shown over the past 20 years in his relationship with UPS. This joint venture will spearhead growth among our other service agents and operations in these countries. This part of the world has become a transportation bridge and ideal near-sourcing location for Europe, Russia and Asia."
Revenues for Unsped have increased over 18 percent on a compounded annual growth rate for the past three years. The nearly 2,500 employees of Unsped will continue to be managed by the Turkish leadership team and become part of the joint venture. Unsped systems in Turkey already link with UPS back-end processing to provide global visibility for customers.
Increased UPS attention in this larger region also will further UPS's opportunity with the growing oil and natural gas industry sector.

This joint venture follows the announcement earlier this year of expanded UPS domestic express small package pickup and delivery services offered in Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates (UAE) with a single technology platform. Shipping processes and information visibility for all domestic and international package delivery services in these countries has been streamlined.

UPS first entered the Middle East in 1987 when it established import operations in Bahrain. The company expanded to offer a comprehensive service portfolio combining local expertise through service contractors and joint ventures within countries, initiating service in Turkey through Unsped in 1988. In 2004, Dubai, UAE, became an important gateway for "around-the-world" flights between Europe and Asia to link major business regions and leverage the UPS global network for sorting and bypass operations in the most efficient manner.

* Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Lebanon, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, United Arab Emirates, Yemen.

DSV Road AB in Sweden (a company of the DSV Group) signed an agreement with Norfolkline AB on the acquisition of its trailer traffic between Norway
and Sweden and continental Europe.

"This acquisition follows the strategy of DSV Road AB to strengthen DSV's
market position in the segment of international trailer traffic," says Henrik
Holm, Managing Director of DSV Road AB.

In connection with the transaction, DSV Road AB will take over the offices of
Norfolkline AB in Helsingborg, including two employees, and the offices and
five employees in Lübeck in Germany.

The expected annual revenue of the activity acquired is approx. SEK 100 million.

The take-over date is set for 1 July 2009.

Kuehne + Nagel has been awarded a five-year contract by Virgin Megastore to support the optimisation of its inventory management in France.

Virgin Megastore, one of France’s leading chains of entertainment and lifestyle stores, relies on Kuehne + Nagel for the management of its central inventory and supplying the whole of its stores throughout the country. The new agreement is part of Virgin Megastore’s corporate project CALLAS (centralisation, approvisionnement, linéaires, logistique, assortiment).

As the exclusive logistics partner of Virgin Megastore in France, Kuehne + Nagel will manage on approx. 8,000 sqm of its distribution centre in Bondoufle, south of Paris, more than 30,000 stock-keeping units of the assortment for the supplying of the country’s 36 megastores. The scope of products handled by Kuehne + Nagel embraces gift packages, movies, video games, consoles, electronics, stationery and other accessories. Books and music are the only product ranges which will continue to be directly replenished by the stores. With this partnership, Virgin Megastore’s objectives are multi-fold: limit multiple data captures, optimise supplies, optimise inventory management, rationalise products ranges as well as trace the products with the ultimate goal of increasing sales.

“This cooperation is a decisive step in terms of orders centralisation and decisively reduces our workload in order management. This benefits directly our clients, our stores and our commercial offer,” says Virgin Megastore’s CEO, Jean Noël Reinhardt. Virgin Megastore is to invest 30 Million euros over five years in its supply chain optimisation and the centralisation of over 60 per cent of its product flows.