Finnish delivery and fulfilment company Posti has announced a major investment in its Baltics parcel business, which will see a new logistics centre featuring automation built for parcel courier Itella in Estonia.
The new unit in Rae Parish, close to Tallinn, is set to become one of Posti’s largest sorting centres in the Baltics, and is expected to cost €14m (c.£12m).
Construction work on the three-hectare site started this month [May 2024], with the logistics centre set to reach approximately 7,500m2 in size. It is expected to be operational for the start of 2025.
A key component of the new site will be the ability to scale up future operations by 2,400m2, as well as expanded infrastructure for charging electric vehicles and other ’employee-focused’ amenities.
“According to our estimates, online shopping growth in Estonia continues strong, as does the popularity of parcel lockers as the most preferred delivery method,” said Gediminas Mickus, head of Naltics, Itella Smartpost.
“As our parcel handling capacity almost triples with the new centre, we ensure maintaining our quality leader position even during the busiest shopping holidays. We want to not only maintain but exceed the high standards set by our customers.”
The company has said the new site will mark the advent of increased automation across Itella’s parcel processes, with parcel sortation capacity expected to grow significantly.
The facility was designed around a ‘smart house’ concept, meaning that the building’s sensors system offer remote control and monitoring of factors such as energy usage.
“The new centre will have the capacity to charge up to 82 electric cars, and we will implement this in stages by 2030. This will help us in reaching Posti’s ambitious zero carbon targets,” added Erich Jeerik, head of operations – Estonia and sorting technology – Baltics, Itella Estonia.
“We have planned the centre with the objective of enhancing the employee experience and upholding high standards of work safety.”
