Lufthansa has announced plans to build a modern logistics centre at Frankfurt Airport. At its meeting today, the Lufthansa Group Supervisory Board approved the investment in the necessary infrastructure for Lufthansa’s cargo business. The building, which will replace the existing over 30-year-old Lufthansa Cargo Center, is due to go into operation in 2018.

“We are investing in the future and in our Frankfurt base,” Lufthansa CEO and Chairman Dr. Christoph Franz stressed. Frankfurt would remain the central hub for the Lufthansa Group’s cargo business, despite the night-flight ban. The night-flight ban meant considerably adjusting the original plans. In view of the competitive disadvantages compared with other locations, it was therefore all the more important to have access to a reliable and efficient infrastructure.

The new logistics centre will be built mainly on Lufthansa Cargo’s existing site in the northern part of Frankfurt Airport. State-of-the-art technological infrastructure will guarantee much faster turnaround times for shipments and will dramatically improve the quality of service for all Lufthansa Cargo customers. “Building of a new logistics centre is a major component of our ‘Lufthansa Cargo 2020’ strategy,” Lufthansa Cargo CEO and Chairman Karl Ulrich Garnadt emphasised. “The new facility will enable us to take a quantum leap in the logistics process and will make the company fit for the challenges of the future.”

Construction of the main building is scheduled to begin in 2014. Since the air cargo terminal will be built on the existing site, the area will have to be cleared and prepared over the coming months. Some processes will be relocated to other areas. Operations will, however, continue while construction work on the new building is in progress. Lufthansa is investing a mid triple-digit million euro sum in the new logistics centre.