Hellmann takes over central warehouse for STIHL in southwest Germany
Global full-service provider Hellmann Worldwide Logistics has signed a 10-year business agreement with the German STIHL Group, securing one of the largest business deals in the company's history. As part of the cooperation Hellmann will take over the warehousing of finished goods for STIHL effective mid-2022. To meet STIHL's high requirements from one single distribution center, Hellmann will be leasing a highly modern finished goods warehouse in Völklingen, Germany, allowing for a strategically optimal geographical location. The new facility is slated to be completed by mid-year and on January 1, 2023, the central warehouse will go into full operation as a single-user location for STIHL. In the logistics center, strategically situated at the trilateral border of Germany, France, and Luxembourg, Hellmann will initially create more than 120 new jobs and anticipates even more jobs will be added as a result of the projected growth in volume.
The STIHL Group develops, manufactures and distributes power tools for professional forestry and agriculture as well as for garden and landscape maintenance, the construction sector and private garden. To be able to logistically implement the planned growth by STIHL - especially in the rechargeable devices segment - property investment firm Dietz AG is building the new Hellmann logistics center in Völklingen. In the future, all STIHL subsidiaries around the world and STIHL dealers, primarily those in Germany, France, and the Benelux countries, will be supplied from Völklingen. The new central location will allow Hellmann to develop an efficient and highly flexible supply chain leveraging a well-connected express and courier service provider network, supported by the ability to take advantage of its own Road & Rail subsidiary in Neunkirchen just 40 km away. In addition, the site features a sustainable building design as well as state-of-the-art warehouse and picking technologies, such as self-propelled picking equipment and smartwatches.
The 58,000 m² logistics center, which includes about 3,000 m² of mezzanine space and 1,600 m² of office space, can be expanded, at a later stage, by an additional 30,000 m² of logistics space to accommodate future volume growth.
“We are very happy that the STIHL Group has chosen Hellmann as its long-term logistics partner to implement its growth strategy in the European market. The recent closing of this decade-long contract is a testament to the trust that STIHL has in us. With STIHL and Hellmann converging as two family-owned businesses that share similar values, I am certain that we will successfully forge ahead and grow together in the years to come," says Volker Sauerborn, COO, Contract Logistics for Hellmann Worldwide Logistics.
Michael Schall, director for strategic logistics projects and the project manager for the new central warehouse at STIHL, is pleased with the new cooperation: "With Hellmann, we have a strong and vastly experienced partner by our side, who will support us in our growth strategy for the battery business."
