UPS selects West Midlands to develop second largest parcels hub in Europe

26 Sptember 2006

UPS the world's largest package delivery company has chosen IM Properties Birch Coppice Business Park as the location for its second largest distribution hub in Europe.

Work is underway on a 24 acre plot for a 355,000 sq ft distribution unit at Birch Coppice alongside junction 10 of the M42 motorway - a location which has been described by Richard Turner, chief executive of the Freight Transport Association as 'The sweet spot for distribution companies.' The new facility at Birch Coppice due for completion next year follows the recent opening of an 800,000 sq ft European Air Hub at Cologne/Bonn Airport, Germany - representing the largest facility investment outside of the USA in UPS's history.

UPS known for its traditional Shield like logo and Brown and Gold liveried delivery vehicles is a market leader in the Less-than-Truckload (LTL) sector of the package distribution business

Birmingham property agents Eagleton & Company who brokered the UPS deal on behalf of IM Properties have achieved rentals of £5.31 per sq ft on lease terms of 20 years and land sales in excess of £400,000 per acre on the 400 acre development scheme.

The start of construction by UPS follows the opening in July this year of Roadways Container Logistics' (RCL) state of the art 35 acre rail served Birmingham Intermodal Freight Terminal (BIFT) at Birch Coppice.

'The unprecedented increase in rail freight volumes bolstered by the growth in global deep sea container traffic into UK docks has seen the number of trains into Birch Coppice double in less than 2 months. Daily services from Southampton docks and Thamesport are now in place through train operators EWS, Freightliner and Fastline Freight.' said Mike Eagleton of property agents Eagleton & Co.

It is expected that BIFT will eventually receive up to 8 trains per day. TNT Logistics - the first rail served occupier at Birch Coppice in 2002 receives one European freight train per day from Germany via the Channel Tunnel.