Deutsche Post DHL is to open an Asia Pacific innovation centre in Singapore next year to pioneer sustainable solutions to keep world trade on the move. With an initial investment of S$10 million (EUR6 million), the Asia Pacific Innovation Centre (APIC) in Singapore will be the first centre for innovative logistics services and solutions in the region.
Due to be launched in the third quarter of 2015, the APIC is a partnership with Singapore’s Economic Development Board (EDB) and will be DHL’s second innovation centre in the world. DHL’s main Innovation centre is located in Troisdorf, Germany.
Kelvin Wong, assistant managing director, Singapore Economic Development Board said, “Singapore is proud to be home to DHL’s first Innovation Centre outside of Germany. DHL’s experience with innovation and solution development will enhance Singapore’s position as the leading logistics hub in Asia.”
He added, “With the establishment of the centre, businesses can look forward to cutting edge solutions targeted at harnessing short and long-term supply chain opportunities.”
Bill Meahl, chief commercial officer, DHL, said, “Innovation is vital to DHL as it allows us not only to develop new products, but also to breathe new life into our existing portfolio. With this S$10 million initial investment, we are proud of this milestone and of being a pioneer of innovative logistics solutions which has made us a world market leader.”
Meahl said: “We have invested in Asia Pacific for over 40 years and will continue to do so. By 2020, we expect 30 per cent of our global revenue from emerging markets up from 20 per cent today. Asia Pacific makes up a large part of this ambition.”
The APIC’s philosophy is built upon three key principles: Inspire, Connect and Engage which underscores APIC’s customer-centric approach to solve evolving and complex logistic challenges in Asia Pacific. Mei Yee, Pang, vice president, DHL Asia Pacific Innovation said: “Through planning of future scenarios of logistics based on our trends research, we aim to inspire industries to invest in the right capabilities for innovative solutions in logistics. We would like to engage our customers to create success stories of innovative solutions that help them be better at what they do.”
The APIC will be located within the new S$160 million (EUR90 million) DHL Supply Chain Advanced Regional Centre (ARC) building currently under construction in Tampines LogisPark.
The APIC will also house the region’s first Asian Centre of Competence for Automation and invest in research to identify relevant automation technologies for Asian markets. The ARC will be designed for complex multi-sector and multi-user operations, showcasing automation solutions. It is envisioned that APIC will invest in capabilities in analytics, e-commerce and last mile solutions for Asia Pacific markets.
