DHL Americas Innovation Center opens to accelerate development of new solutions for improved logistics and supply chain operations

• DHL is committed to investing in new
  technologies in coming years
• Based in the Chicago area, the center will
  serve as a gathering point for DHL technology partners and customers to explore
  new solutions
• Center taps the innovative spirit that
  has defined DHL since its inception in 1969

ROSEMONT, IL�- Media
OutReach - 13 September 2019 – DHL is expanding its global innovation footprint to the
Americas region with the grand opening here today of its Americas Innovation
Center. Joining
the DHL Innovation Center in Troisdorf near Bonn, Germany, and the Asia Pacific
Innovation Center in Singapore, the Americas Innovation Center will exhibit technologies
that DHL is already implementing across the region as well as investigate future
solutions that can provide significant productivity and efficiency gains.

“Innovation
has been a driving force for DHL since its inception in 1969,” said Ken Allen,
CEO of DHL eCommerce Solutions and Board Member for Customer Solutions &
Innovation at Deutsche Post DHL Group which looks after DHL’s largest
customers. “Now with three Innovation Centers around the world, DHL can
leverage the power of innovation to serve customers and play an active role in
shaping the future of logistics. DHL is an organization that prioritizes
thinking differently to deliver excellence, and I’m proud we now have this
platform in the Americas to extend these capabilities to partners in their own
backyard.”

The
state-of-the-art 28,000 square foot facility provides a collaborative space for
DHL to work with its customers, its technology partners, and academics as well
as tap the innovative power of its employees. Establishing the new center in
the Americas is a high point in the celebration of DHL’s 50^th
anniversary this year. The opening event drew more than 300 guests including
technology and logistics industry leaders, customers from across the region,
local officials and DHL senior leadership.

“Innovation
enables DHL to be at the forefront of game-changing solutions for the supply
chain industry,” says Matthias Heutger, Global Head of Innovation and
Commercial Development at DHL. “The Innovation Centers are the nucleus of our
customer-centric innovation approach. They provide the platform for
understanding emerging trends and discovering insights with the potential to
drive real-world business impacts. DHL was the first player to utilize picking
robots, for example, in North American warehouses. Self-driving robots to
support order picking can increase picking rates up to 200% which is
significant in a fast-moving, globalized e-commerce environment.”

The
four DHL business units operating in the Americas are committed to investing in
coming years in the development and adoption of new technologies that can
improve operations, better the customer experience, lower costs and facilitate
better workplace processes for its employees.

As a global leader in logistics, DHL continuously evaluates
innovative customer-centric solutions, already implementing a variety of advanced
technologies to boost productivity, lower costs and better serve evolving
customer needs. For instance, DHL Supply Chain, the contract logistics
specialist within Deutsche Post DHL Group, has already seen significant
productivity increases, especially in peak season, by using various robotic
solutions including automated guided vehicles that can ferry goods through
warehouses, mobile robots that can facilitate order fulfillment in e-commerce
operations and collaborative robots designed to help with repetitive tasks,
such as picking and packing. As part of its commitment to invest in new technologies,
DHL Supply Chain said last November it would be investing $300 million in 2018
and through this year to deploy emerging technologies to 350 of its 430 North
American facilities and transportation control towers. The company is also
investing in the development of a new digital platform to manage its
transportations operations.

DHL Express, the world’s leading
international express delivery company, will continue to add more automation at
its regional hubs, gateways and service centers, introduce robotics to help
with shipment loading/unloading, expand the use of AI and machine learning for
better route optimization, apply repetitive process automation for billing
tasks as well as continue the addition of chatbots and voice recognition tools
for bookings, order tracking and improved customer service.

DHL Global Forwarding, the top specialist in air and ocean
transport, is working with improved technology to track packages and handle temperature-sensitive
shipments as well as implementing warehouse automation with RFID tracking to
track cargo location, shipment consolidation and shipping schedules. DHL Global
Forwarding unveiled yesterday a new advanced data analytics tool designed for
clients with highly sensitive cargo such as the life sciences and healthcare
sector. It provides quick analysis and insights for better decision-making such
as the optimal trade lanes to utilize, verification of temperature controls in
transit, and the ability to analyze and reduce risks. Like DHL Express, DHL
Global Forwarding is using virtual reality for employee training programs in
several countries in the Americas. DHL eCommerce Solutions, a major provider of
domestic and cross-border delivery services for online retailers, is also using
automation and robotics to improve productivity in its distribution centers. It’s
utilizing new software solutions to optimize inventory management for its
merchants and improve the last-mile delivery experience for consumers.

For more
information about the DHL Americas Innovation Center and how DHL is at the
forefront of innovation in the logistics industry, please click here.

50 Years DHL

In 2019 DHL
is celebrating 50 years since the company’s founding by three entrepreneurs in
San Francisco in 1969. DHL began as a disruptor to the traditional delivery
industry, circumventing bureaucracy with an innovative new service to deliver
documents by air overnight. Since then, DHL has grown into a globe-spanning
family of DHL companies with about 380,000 employees in over 220 countries and
territories that covers the entire spectrum of logistics and supply chain
services. DHL’s customer-centricity and can-do culture have fueled five decades
of innovation — from the DHL 1000, one of
the first word processing computers in the world, to using the purpose built
StreetScooter, an environmentally friendly delivery vehicle powered by an
electric drive and developed by Deutsche Post DHL Group. With the Mission 2050
commitment to reach zero group-wide emissions by 2050, DHL is continuing to be
a trailblazer in the logistics industry.

DHL — The logistics company for the
world

DHL is the
leading global brand in the logistics industry. Our DHL family of divisions
offer an unrivalled portfolio of logistics services ranging from national and
international parcel delivery, e-commerce shipping and fulfillment solutions,
international express, road, air and ocean transport to industrial supply chain
management. With about 380,000 employees in more than 220 countries and
territories worldwide, DHL connects people and businesses securely and
reliably, enabling global trade flows. With specialized solutions for growth
markets and industries including technology, life sciences and healthcare,
energy, automotive and retail, a proven commitment to corporate responsibility
and an unrivalled presence in developing markets, DHL is decisively positioned
as “The logistics company for the world”.

DHL is part of Deutsche Post DHL Group. The Group generated revenues of
more than 61 billion euros in 2018.