Just under 4,000 square metres of additional space and 42 extra gates for general cargo handling, as well as an electric vehicle charging park – the new construction and refurbishment work at the Central Hub in Schlitz can now begin.
Thirty years ago, the general cargo cooperation Online Systemlogistik (OSL) opened the Central Hub in Schlitz near Fulda; it was expanded in 1997 and 1998. Since 2005, the ‚Central Hub II‘ has been in operation in the immediate vicinity of ‚Central Hub I‘. Now OSL can expand its operations here once again. “We are delighted that, thanks to a stroke of good fortune, we are able to grow at our proven location in the heart of Germany,” says OSL Managing Director Petra Welling. “The expansion of our Central Hub provides the ideal conditions for welcoming further partners into our network.”
Two Central Hubs at a single location
Until now, the expansion of the site had been hindered by a property belonging to a CEP service provider. The plot has now been put up for sale. Thanks to this acquisition, OSL can now redesign and expand its own facility so that an additional 42 loading gates are available at Central Hub I for loading and unloading. This increases the total number of loading gates at Central Hub I and Central Hub II from 220 to 262. The handling areas will be expanded to a total of around 21,000 square metres thanks to the approximately 4,000-square-metre extension to Central Hub I. The old CEP building was already demolished at the beginning of June, and further preparations are underway. The actual construction work is scheduled to start at the end of the year.
“We couldn’t pass up this unique opportunity to expand the premises and finally develop our Central Hub,” says Petra Welling. “For years, we have been searching for a location with good transport links where growth is possible, as our Central Hubs are operating at full capacity. However, only from a central location can every partner reach every route every night. To ensure we can continue to optimise regions as planned and implement the two-partner strategy in major national cities and internationally, we need to take on new partners. For this, too, we require more handling space and gates at the Central Hub.”
E-charging park included
In parallel with the expansion, an e-charging park is to be built for charging electric trucks. According to OSL’s calculations, 18 charging points are required. A connected load of at least one megawatt is available exclusively for this purpose. To illustrate: this will enable 128 trucks to recharge their batteries every day. To ensure that all electric trucks requiring charging at the Central Hub are supplied with sufficient power, the respective demand will be determined and the charging process controlled via highly flexible software. In addition to the charging stations, a 20-MW battery storage system will secure the power supply at the Central Hub. Furthermore, a photovoltaic system on the company’s own rooftops will generate electricity.
Planning for the charging infrastructure is expected to be completed in autumn 2026, with the electric charging park at the Central Hub due to come into operation in 2028. During the transitional period, OSL partners travelling from the south can charge their electric trucks on the A7 at the Fulda Nord service area; OSL partners from the north will use the Niederaula service area for this purpose. Both electric charging stations are located approximately 16 kilometres from the Central Hub in Schlitz.