DHL Express Germany has awarded Vanderlande a contract to provide automation solutions – including the SPOX sorter – for its new facility in Cologne. The agreement was signed on October 21 at Parcel+Post Expo 2025 in Amsterdam.
This will be the first time this sorter has been installed at a DHL facility. Able to sort 6,000 items per hour, SPOX will allow DHL Express Germany to handle a mixed flow of regular and small parcels in the Cologne facility – including those as thin as 5mm.
The sorter has been designed and built with sustainability in mind. When components wear out, they can be refurbished and then reintegrated into the system.
In addition to the sorter, Vanderlande will provide two chutes, nine truck outfeeds and three van lines. It will also implement its PACE Sort sortation control software. This delivers secure host integration and advanced sortation logic to help manage complex parcel flows. It will reportedly be the first time this software has been installed at a greenfield site for DHL Express.
“This contract win reflects DHL’s trust in Vanderlande and shows the strength of our longstanding partnership,” said Markus Ehrmann, executive managing director of Vanderlande. “We’re delighted to be installing SPOX, our unique sorting solution that has been manufactured according to the principles of circularity, and that provides customers with improved flexibility and accuracy.”
“Vanderlande’s solution will allow us to handle the parcel flow with increased efficiency, along with the ability to sort a diverse range of items,” added Christian Knieps, director of engineering at DHL Express Germany. “As ever, our team will be working closely with Vanderlande through the installation phase to ensure a seamless integration before go-live, which is set for September 2026.”
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