Baur Hermes Fulfilment GmbH, the new joint venture between the BAUR Group and Hermes Fulfilment in Altenkunstadt, Upper Franconia, is picking up speed. Construction work at the traditional site officially began today, Monday, with the ground-breaking ceremony. A total of 150 million euros will be invested in the expansion of a 16,300 square meter, fully automated shuttle warehouse by the time it goes into operation in spring 2024.
"The investment decision is an extremely positive and significant signal for the site and the entire Obermain region," said Stephan Elsner, Chairman of the Baur Management Board. "A state-of-the-art parcel logistics facility is being built in Altenkunstadt, which will enhance and strengthen the importance of Upper Franconia as a logistics location within the Otto Group and secure jobs in the long term."
The major investment is linked to a new corporate framework. To this end, the BAUR Group and Hermes Fulfilment have founded a new joint venture, Baur Hermes Fulfilment GmbH (BHF), which will commence operations on June 1. In future, BHF will manage the Altenkunstadt site and look after the customer About You. "The new company combines the enormous efficiency and long-proven operational excellence of BAUR-Logistik with the strengths and network capabilities of Hermes Fulfilment," said Kevin Kufs, CEO of the Hermes Fulfilment Group. "With this joint venture, we ensure maximum decision-making and implementation speed and can thus continue to optimally handle the expected strong growth of our customer in the future."
Meanwhile, the process of transferring the 1,900 employees to BHF has started as planned. The ground-breaking ceremony has already been preceded by preparatory measures such as demolition work in recent weeks. Ecological building aspects and energy efficiency also play a key role in the project.