John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport opened its new Canadian $12 million ($9.1 million) cargo centre on 30 July, which aims to boost the airport’s freight volumes.
The Federal and Ontario governments joined with Hamilton’s Municipal Government, TradePort International Corporation and Cargojet Airways to mark the opening.
Cargojet will be the anchor tenant of the cargo facility, occupying around half of the space with the balance available to existing carriers and others such as courier company Purolator along with the integrators DHL and UPS.
The 77,000 square foot centre will support the expansion of the airport’s cargo operations. It is also aimed at stimulating job creation and economic development for the city of Hamilton and the region.
John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport president and chief executive officer, Frank Scremin, says: “We’re thrilled with the new cargo centre and look forward to the opportunities it will help facilitate. This facility will allow us to maintain Hamilton International Airport’s dominant presence in the overnight express cargo segment in Canada, and create new opportunities to diversify the types of goods that can be processed through the airport.”
The development has a common-use warehouse and office space, as well as a temperature-controlled storage area. The airport says this area will open the door to shipping high-value perishables like seafood, pharmaceutical products, produce and flowers.
The gateway hopes to entice more cargo business as it has 24-7 cargo operations, competitive operating fees and is a key location in central Canada’s Southern Ontario region.
Hamilton International is seen as an ideal location for automotive manufacturing products, floral distribution and a key transit point for seafood.
In 2014, the airport saw an eight per cent rise in cargo volumes to 75,000 tonnes compared to 2013. This was driven by an increase in express cargo, high-speed logistics, growth of e-commerce, and a surge in the cargo charter segment.
