DHL has named Charles Graham the new Global CEO for Aviation at DHL Express and a member of the company’s Global Express Management Board.
He succeeds Terry Nord, who will retire from DHL after eight successful years of managing growth for DHL’s global aviation services.
Based in Bonn, Germany, Graham will be responsible for all aspects of DHL’s aviation activities, in particular leading the strategic development of Bonn-based DHL‘s global aviation network to drive and support the company’s growth plans.
Mr. Graham most recently was CEO of AWAS (formerly known as Ansett Worldwide ), a position he assumed in 1997 and held until 2006. AWAS is one of the world’s leading aircraft leasing organizations, boasting a fleet of 180 aircraft and conducting business in more than 80 countries.
Prior to AWAS, Graham spent 18 years with TNT, playing a key role in establishing and strategically growing the resulting entities of the company’s various mergers and acquisitions. As CFO and Group Executive Director of TNT Express, he expanded the company’s coverage from 60 to 200 countries and was instrumental in transforming the company from a purely courier-service provider to a fully integrated parcel, freight and logistics service organization.
Mr. Graham, who is from Scotland, is married and has six children. He holds a law degree from the University of Glasgow.
DHL has also announced the opening of a new gateway in Merida, Mexico, to enhance service quality and meet the growing needs of DHL customers shipping across the US-Mexico border.
The international gateway operation will increase DHL’s handling capacity by more than 87 percent in the region, enabling the transport of more than 38,000 additional shipments each year. The investment is part of a strategic DHL development plan for Mexico’s southeastern region.
The strategy will enable DHL to increase its routes and capacity, as well as expand service coverage and provide enhanced customer service.
Mexico is the second largest importer of U.S. exports and the third country of destination of U.S. imports. DHL said industries that will most directly benefit from the introduction of the new facility include maquilas, jewelry, oil, printing, auto parts, electronic cards, hardware and software.
The new Merida gateway provides both U.S. and businesses based throughout the region – including those in Cancun, Ciudad del Carmen, Villahermosa, Tuxtla Gutierrez and Minatitlan – with a new facility for the transshipment of goods across the U.S.-Mexico border. DHL’s Merida gateway has been authorized by the Mexico national customs authority to operate as a customs facility for the consolidation of the area’s imports and exports.
With the establishment of the Merida gateway, DHL will also manage the customs clearance process through a local agent, which it said will reduce average international delivery service times into the cities of Merida, Cancun, Ciudad del Carmen and Campeche from two days to one. DHL customers will receive specialized service by contracting with the agent of their choice.
Before the Merida gateway, shipments bound to the area from the U.S were processed by customs in Mexico City.
DHL Express Mexico operates more than 34 domestic and international flights daily and maintains four major ground hubs and three additional international gateways in Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey.
