OREANDA-NEWS. FedEx Express (FedEx), a subsidiary of FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX), and the world’s largest express transportation company, has opened a new facility at Perth Airport, Western Australia, approximately 3,000 square meters in size.

More than twice the size of the previous facility, the new site’s close proximity to the Perth cargo terminal, along with better highway entry points, improves FedEx ability to retrieve and distribute freight.

FedEx is investing in advanced logistics at the facility, including an automated cargo sorting system to meet the fast-growing demand for express cargo. The new facility has the capacity to sort up to 3,000 packages per hour, allowing inbound and outbound shipments to be processed faster. The new processing, combined with improved functions to load and unload shipping containers and state-of-the-art parcel processing systems, will significantly boost efficiencies.

The growth of e-commerce has seen a rise in the purchase of international goods among Australian businesses and consumers, including in the Perth area. Australian retail e-commerce sales are tipped to reach A$14 billion by 2018, a 46% increase from 2015. At this point, e-commerce retail sales are forecasted to account for 5.6% of all Australian retail sales.

“FedEx is making strategic investments in the physical infrastructure and technology that will support e-commerce and SME businesses in Australia, as well as our B2B customer base” explained Kim Garner, managing director, FedEx Express Australasia.

“In Perth alone, our road fleet has doubled over the past decade. Our enhanced facility in Perth is in direct response to Australia’s e-commerce boom and by improving efficiencies, we will connect more West Australians to international markets.”

FedEx has been operating in Perth since the 1990s. As a key gateway for West Australia to the global economy, the new facility in Perth will give greater access to Australians to customers around the world. FedEx Australia also has facilities located at Adelaide, Brisbane, Canberra Gold Coast, Melbourne and Sydney.

“We are delighted to welcome the new purpose built FedEx facility to the Perth Airport estate. Due to our close proximity to Perth, and links to major road network infrastructure, we are confident that FedEx will be able to grow their business and service their customers efficiently,” said Kevin Brown, Chief Executive Officer, Perth Airport.