A new 11.5 acre storage park for empty containers has opened in Southampton to help keep supply chains moving in the run up to Christmas.
DP World opened the facility to store extra empty containers, increasing Southampton’s storage capacity. Dwell times – the amount of time a container stays at a terminal before being taken off the premises by a HGV – have increased across the UK, making sites like this vital to keep the supply chain moving.
Ernst Schulze, who is DP World’s UK chief executive, said: “The new £3 million empty park is part of DP World’s ongoing £40 million investment this year at Britain’s second largest container terminal. We now have 25% more storage capacity at Southampton than before which will enable us to maintain productivity and service levels for the vital next few months and beyond.”
He said the move would help establish Southampton as a smart logistics hub, giving customers additional flexibility, security, reliability and speed.
Improvements made in 2021
Earlier this year, the berths at Southampton were dredged and widened to make sure it was able to accommodate the world’s largest ships. The port also benefited from a £1.5 million project to extend a quay crane rail by 120 metres.
DP World operates two ports in the UK – Southampton and London Gateway. A record volume of cargo was handled at these ports during the first six months of 2021 with Southampton seeing a record throughput of 995,000 TEU.
Both the ports were also given freeport status, establishing their role as logistic hubs for international trade. Freeports allow imports to enter without paying tariffs and with simpler customs procedures.
Dealing with shipments which have arrived from overseas and keeping an eye on supply chain issues is a key part of AP+’s work as a provider of third party logistics (3PL) services. We use state-of-the art software to compare quotes from more than 80 carriers to ensure customers are not kept waiting for their orders and to minimise the costs for our clients.
We specialise in the furniture and homeware sector, offering storage and fulfilment services. As well as storing stock in our 300,00 sq ft warehouse, we also pick and pack orders before sending them directly to the end customer.
To find out more about what AP+ can do for your business, talk to a member of our team today.
