To further tap into the booming markets of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), US speed courier FedEx Express Corp announced yesterday the establishment of its third operation center in the Greater Taipei area.
"Local SMEs enjoyed double-digit growth in export sales over the past few years and will continue to drive the economy. The new station will allow us to better respond to increased SME demands," Scott Williams, managing director of FedEx Taiwan, said at an inauguration ceremony at the Wugu Industrial Park in Taipei County.
The Wugu operation center joins the other two -- Neihu and Banciao -- in the Greater Taipei area, and is the eighth in the country. FedEx also has operations centers in Taoyuan, Hsinchu, Taichung, Tainan and Kaohsiung.
Opened four years ago, the Neihu and Banciao stations have reached their full capacity. The addition of the Wugu center will boost FedEx's capacity by another 50 percent to accommodate businesses in Taipei city and county, according to Williams.
Williams declined to reveal total investment for the Wugu center, which commenced operations on May 8, except to say that the amount was "substantial."
The new station employs a staff of 50, occupies a space of 2,000m2 and handles up to 5,000 packages per hour, according to Samuel Pang (潘成家), FedEx's senior manager of station operations.
It is set to offer faster access to the CKS International Airport, reducing transportation time for delivering time-sensitive goods to and from the airport, he added.
FedEx, which moved into the local market in 1990, is eyeing continued growth in the nation, fueled by SME's business expansion. SMEs make up around 98 percent of the nation's businesses.
Statistics from the Ministry of Finance showed that the nation's exports hit US$18.79 billion last month, a 15 percent growth from the same period a year ago.
FedEx will continue to benefit from the high-end goods produced by the high-tech sector, as well as the products manufactured by traditional industries, Williams said.
"Asia is growing fast and Taiwan is an important market to us. We will continue to grow locally year over year," he added.
To cope with its increasing business, FedEx relocated and expanded its Hsinchu station in March. The move was made to meet demand for time-sensitive shipments and integrated logistics services. The station will be combined with the establishment of an Express Distribution Center in the near future as FedEx bids to offer better services to clients, he said.
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