DHL Supply Chain has assumed responsibility for Lufthansa Group’s global work apparel logistics.

The airline’s service company, Lufthansa Global Business Services GmbH, awarded the contract for the purchasing, warehousing, and distribution of Lufthansa work apparel to the Bonn-based supply chain specialist, effective April 1.

DHL will process volumes of approximately 53,000 orders a year at its warehouse just outside of Berlin.  The facility is also equipped with its own tailoring shop. DHL will also manage two Lufthansa Service Centers at the Frankfurt and Munich airports. The contract will be executed through a trading company set up by DHL, which will act as general contractor.

“When it comes to apparel logistics, we have far-reaching expertise and experience that we can pass on to our customers,” says Benoit Dumont, CEO of DHL Supply Chain, Germany, Alps, and Nordics. “And in this case, we’re even our own customer. We’ve been handling the distribution of work apparel for Deutsche Post DHL Group employees for years.”

The Lufthansa contract covers the handling of some 125,000 different items for 30,000 employees, including pilots, flight attendants, and ground personnel. In addition to storage, DHL will be responsible for the buying and procurement of the clothing, processing the orders placed by Lufthansa employees as well as the packaging, delivery and returns handling. With a tailor on the premises, the clothing can be fitted according to the order placed.

DHL also operates two Lufthansa Service Centers at the Frankfurt am Main and Munich airports, providing employees with a local point of contact. The contract runs through July 2021.