Bechtle doubles warehousing space in Germany

• Second logistics hub spells new room for growth
• Bechtle rents nearly 21,000 m² in two-storey logistics property
• Choosing Hamburg meshes with Bechtle’s Sustainability Strategy

Bechtle AG is set to scale up its logistics capacity by opening a new warehousing site in Hamburg-Wilhelmsburg, where the IT company will settle in on no less than 20,735 m² of the upper floor of Europe’s very first two-storey logistics property, Mach2. Bechtle’s two major logistics hubs in Neckarsulm and Hamburg thus have a combined area of some 46,000 m². A satellite site in Bielefeld currently adds another 13,500 m² or so. In Hamburg, the new site’s close proximity to the port will unburden road transport of IT products coming into Germany by sea. The bulk of orders from customers located in the north and east of Germany will also ship via the new Bechtle hub. In this way, Bechtle is not only shortening its supply chain but also enabling a dramatic reduction of its carbon footprint. First established in 1983, the IT company is planning to have the site set up and fully operational in the fourth quarter of 2022 with 130 people working for Bechtle Logistik Nord.

Mirroring logistics at the group headquarters in Neckarsulm, Bechtle’s new logistics site will be offering warehousing services including storage, picking, packing and shipping, as well as related services such as configuration and customisation including user-specific software preloads for IT hardware, as well as help desk services. For Bechtle, the new hub is not only a prerequisite to achieve its growth targets, but its also a component of the organisation’s action plan for sustainable logistics laid out in the Bechtle Sustainability Strategy 2030. Together with the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits (IIS), Bechtle had conducted an extensive evaluation of a number of possible sites with the aim of cutting down lead times. The resulting geographic recommendation of adding warehousing capacities in northern Germany ultimately informed Bechtle’s decision for Hamburg. Short distances between the sea terminal, freight yard, airport and motorway mean the new site is very well connected by all common modes of transport. In addition, the premises align with Bechtle’s desire to make sustainable use of space in urban areas through their efficient and innovative two-storey design.

Preliminary internal projections suggest the company can expect a dramatic reduction in transport-related carbon emissions as a result of cutting down on material transport routes, making the site a key contributor to the goals set out in Bechtle’s Sustainability Strategy. Among other objectives, Germany’s largest IT service provider aims to become carbon-neutral in its areas of influence by 2030 through a combination of avoidance, reduction and compensation.

Quotes:

“We’re absolutely sold on the site not only because of its exceptional location, but also the property’s extremely smart design. By shrinking distances, we want to offer our customers in particular much better lead times and high service standards,” says Hans Heinold, Managing Director, Bechtle Logistik & Service.

Dr Thomas Olemotz, CEO, Bechtle AG: “Our growth target for 2030 anticipates a business volume of 10 bn euros. The decision to establish another logistics hub is a critical prerequisite for achieving this goal. We’re working at full steam to extend our advanced logistics concept from Neckarsulm to our new site in Hamburg. This extension is set to dramatically ease the very tight logistics situation at the Bechtle campus. The sheer number of complex projects translates to an enormous need for space, and we have every intention to put our money where our mouth is and scale up our capacities to match demand.”