Schenker Logistics and BAX Global Inc. broke ground today on a new, 202,000-square-foot, build-to-suit air cargo and freight logistics facility at DFW International Airport’s International Commerce Park.
The 18-acre campus, located at 2400 Esters Boulevard in DFW Airport, Texas, is expected to open in October 2008 and will include a nearly 131,000-square-footinternational building and a 71,000-square-foot domestic building for use by 160 local employees of Schenker Inc., the merged Schenker/BAX entity. Schenker has signed a 10-year lease on the facility, allowing for significant growth over the next decade.
The modern logistics campus will benefit global and local customers with expanded import and export operations that include more than double the amount of Schenker and BAX’s existing square footage, 78 truck bays – versus 47 in BAX’s existing DFW facility – and a 120-foot clear span for domestic cross-dock activities. The new facility will also incorporate wireless scanning using RFID technology, sophisticated security systems throughout the dock and yard, more efficient use of space, state-of-the-art training facilities and other advanced systems.
“The new Schenker/BAX Dallas Campus will be one of the combined company’s largest operations in the world, demonstrating our commitment to offering state-of-the-art facilities to handle customer freight quickly and efficiently without risk of damage,” said Jim Schutzenhofer, Senior Vice President, Americas and Western Region, BAX Global.
“We are pleased to be partnering with DFW International Airport and Perot Development Company to create this world-class facility.” DFW International Airport is a strategic multi-modal hub for BAX Global, which handles air cargo arriving into the airport primarily from Asian and European markets and distributes the cargo to destinations throughout the Central U.S. BAX Global also consolidates freight within Texas and the Southwest into DFW International Airport and feeds air cargo volumes to Asian and European air cargo carriers, as well as BAX Global’s own domestic fleet of aircraft.
BAX Global has operated at the airport since it first opened in the 1970s, and BAX is the largest and fastest-growing air cargo operator at the airport, with more than 100 million pounds of air cargo and freight handled annually. BAX Global’s current facility is located in the airport’s northwest air cargo area at 3015 North Airfield Drive, including a 76,000-square-foot air cargo building and an aircraft apron accommodating up to four Group IV aircraft parking positions.
When the new facility is completed, BAX Global will consolidate its existing facility with Schenker’s existing operation located in a 26,000-square-foot building at 600 East Dallas Road in Grapevine, and BAX will outsource the handling of its aircraft to a cargo handling company located at the DFW International Air CargoCentre™. BAX’s move will also free up valuable space on-airport for new cargo airlines to expand into the airport.
“Schenker and BAX are two terrific international companies that continue to enhance the global profile and portfolio of International Commerce Park at DFW,” said Jeff Fegan, CEO of DFW International Airport. “At full build out, International Commerce Park will be home to more than 6 million square feet of building space. It will continue to be a magnet for future business opportunities for DFW and North Texas and be a key link of our region to the global economy.”
DFW International Airport’s International Commerce Park is a 650-acre, master-planned development located in the northeast quadrant of the airport, south of I-635, east of S.H. 121 and north of S.H. 114. Current tenants include Aviall, Inc., Amazon.com, Arizona Tile, the Pratt & Whitney Division of United Technologies, Stock Building Supply, Life Science Logistics, Broder Brothers and DHL. International Commerce Park is estimated ultimately to produce 3,163 total jobs, generating salaries of approximately $131.6 million for local employees and producing $329 million of projected economic impact on the DFW region.
Perot Development Company, a Dallas-based development firm specializing in aviation and maritime industry projects, is the developer and project manager of the Schenker/BAX Dallas Campus. Halff Associates, Inc. is the project architect and civil engineer, and McFadden & Miller Construction Company is the general contractor.
About BAX Global Inc. and Schenker
BAX Global and Schenker are a part of DB Logistics, the transportation and logistics division of Deutsche Bahn AG. Schenker and BAX Global are in the process of integrating around the world and joining forces to become the industry’s leading logistics provider. The joint organization has a team of about 55,000 experts at 1,500 locations in 150 countries. Together, Schenker and BAX are now the world’s number one source for European land transportation, number two for global air freight, number three for global sea freight, number six for global contract logistics and number three for North America integrated heavy freight. BAX specializes in managing the movement of heavyweight packages and cargo of all shapes and sizes. It offers specialty services for the aerospace, automotive, high-tech, retail, government and healthcare sectors. For more information, visit www.baxglobal.com, www.baxgoesschenker.com and www.schenker.com.