UPS has announced plans to establish international air hub in Shanghai, and the introduction of a domestic express service in China

Effective July 10th, UPS will also begin a direct service between Shanghai and Japan which will fly Shanghai-Osaka-Anchorage five times a week and Shanghai-Tokyo six times a week. The Japan flight service is viewed as an important step to consolidating the UPS network out of Shanghai prior to foundation of the hub in 2007. When operational, the hub will handle at least 72 all-cargo movements per week.

UPS domestic express service will be implemented in China over the next few months to select customers on a contractual basis. This service will gradually be extended to major cities within China.

“Today’s announcements of our Shanghai hub, domestic express service and Shanghai-Japan flights are the latest strategic developments in our plan to develop our network in China and bring our world class products and services to this market,” said Ken Torok, president, UPS Asia Pacific.

Torok added that since taking direct control over its international express operations in February this year, UPS has invested heavily in China. By the end of this year, UPS will have more than 3,500 employees in China, deploying more than 1,400 vehicles with 75 operational facilities.

Mr. Wu Nian-zu, chairman of the board of directors & president of Shanghai Airport (Group), said: “We are committed to working closely with UPS to develop a successful international hub. With the Pudong Airport being based in Shanghai, an important transportation point in China, and the commitment of the two parties involved, we look forward to developing a thriving operation.”

The hub will operate the following functions: express handling unit, sorting facilities, cargo handling, build-up areas and ramp handling operations. The hub’s annual cargo handling capacity is expected to exceed 200,000 tons. In addition to direct flights to Japan, the hub will serve the US directly, Korea, as well as the UPS Intra-Asia hub in Clark, Philippines.

In addition to the routings between Shanghai and Japan, the US DOT recently authorised UPS to operate three additional frequencies to serve China, effective in 2006 – one to Guangzhou and two to Shanghai. This will allow UPS to offer seven-days-a-week service to Guangzhou and to increase its daily service to Shanghai on the two busiest days of the week, Thursday and Saturday.

UPS Supply Chain Solutions also recently announced plans to open an additional twenty facilities in some of China’s major cities over the next two years. This will expand the number of logistics centres operated in China by UPS Supply Chain Solutions to more than forty.

This news follows hot on the heels of rival FedEx’s announcement regarding expansion of its hub operations in Asia.
[Refer FedEx to expand APAC hub ops]