DHL to invest 16.3 mn and introduce drones in India

Global Logistics provider DHL is planning to invest about USD 16.3 million in all its business segments in India and introduce new technologies, including drones, for deliveries andmanaging logistics, a senior company executive said today.
"We are investing in all divisions in India," said Matthias Heutger, senior vice president for strategy marketing and development.
Speaking at the launch of DHL Asia Pacific Innovation Centre here, he said the group will be introducing new technologies including drones for deliveries andmanaging logistics in the Indian market in the future.
"The use of drones in the delivering and managing logistics is becomingincreasingly important globally, especially in theremote and disaster hit areas," he told PTI.

DHL has already invested Euro 100 million (USD 109 million) for transportation, warehousing, information technology network and manpower training over the last three years.
It also plans to include a new Free Trade Warehousing Zone (FTWZ) in North India next year and participate in the rail-based transportation.

DHL is expected to invest between Euro 5 million (USD 5.4 million) and Euro 15 million (USD 16.3 million) in the zone, which will be its third in India. As part of the elaborate investment plan, state-of-the-art warehouses will be set up near high demand growth regions such as Navi Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Calcutta, Ambala and Kochi. A new airport is expected to come in Mumbai.

Long haul trucks are being used on the North-South Indian corridor for speedy delivery on long routes. Owing to such expansion, the company's growth in India has outpaced the overall sectoral growth in the country, the company said.
The Indian logistics industry is annually growing at 10-11 per cent while DHL is growing its supply chain business between 25-30 per cent, it said.
"With our emerging markets expected to generate 30 per cent of DHL global revenue by 2020, our sustained industry leadership demands that we successfully differentiate our services in these markets through well-calculated forays into new technologies, processes and products," said Bill Meahl, Chief Commercial Officers.

The launch of the centre in Singapore is a natural step to maintain our lead as a frontrunner in innovation, following the success of our first centre in Germany, he said.
The centre will drive DHL's "trend research" initiative focusing on emerging trends in Asian logistics and economic activity, he added.