TNT, one of the world’s leading express integrators, Thursday opened a P15 million North Luzon depot in San Fernando, Pampanga as part of its plans to build its presence and market reach in the Philippines and across South East Asia.

The new depot is close to Subic, Clark, Angeles and the Bataan economic zone, providing flexibility of extended pick-up and delivery cut – times.

Some 400 tons of shipment and consignments from neighboring locators can pass through the depot’s 800 square meter operational area for handling, check-in, Larose label printing, data entry, scanning, bagging, consolidation for airline processing.

It can also handle deconsolidation activities and has a multi-pallet-position selective racking facility ideal for various storage requirements.

Furthermore, TNT has installed CCTV cameras, making it a 24/7 security-controlled depot.

The new depot is expandable to accommodate heavy freight equipment and machinery and can provide additional warehousing to nearby locators, serving as a Forward Stock Locator (FSL) for businesses with distribution requirements.

The facility is also connected to TNT’s Global Track and Trace systems giving clients the convenience of knowing the exact location and status of their shipments in real time.

“The opening of the Pampanga depot is another key milestone in TNT’s growth strategy in South East Asia,” reiterated Chris Spanjaard, operations director, TNT Asia.

“It will improve TNT services, enhance the connectivity and quality of the TNT Asia air and road network,” he added. Customers can easily be linked from the Philippines to markets in Europe, the Middle East and rest of the world.

“We’ve built the Pampanga depot with freight operational capability, backed up by our strong global network and ISO-certified processes,” according to Cetin Yalcin, country general manager of TNT Philippines.

“We have invested in this depot to offer greater value to our customers,” he elaborated. “We are very excited to be here in the North. Locators from the area have already expressed interest in TNT’s presence in the region.”

Locators need a dedicated service provider who is flexible to their current and future shipments needs, he emphasized. “With further expansion and investment in mind, we are poised to drive the express and freight market in this region as well as in the rest of the Philippines.”