Building a Logistics Hub in an Inland City

Text by He Fan

Photos by He Jingxing & Zhou Guoqiang

One

In 2014,SF Express planned to build its own cargo airport.

After careful investigation,SF Express selected Ezhou City in Hubei Province.As the smallest prefecture-level city in inland China,Ezhou,60 kilometers away from Wuhan,covers a landmass of 1,594 square kilometers and has a population of over 1.1 million.

The city of Ezhou was chosen for its underdeveloped airspace resources and less occupied passenger air routes,which would be favorable to cargo operations at the airport.When Ezhou’s SF International Airport is complete,it will have a dualhub function of passenger and freight transportation in the Wuhan city circle.Moreover,the seamless link of all sorts of transportation facilities,including airports,expressways,the Beijing-Guangzhou railway,the Wuhan-Huangshi intercity railway,and the Yangtze River golden waterway,will form a dense and highly efficient transportation hub.However,the cargo volume in and around Wuhan is insufficient to support the airport.If the Ezhou Airport wants to achieve success,it has to establish itself as the central hub of China,or even the whole world,so as to increase its supply of goods moving through the facility.And Wuhan needs to become a “central market” in China.

Two

Based on international experience,a logistics center doesn’t have to be set up in a harbor city.For example,Zaragoza is a Spanish city located 250 kilometers away from the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.Despite its distance from the ocean,it was still singled out by the well-known international clothing brand,Zara,as their distribution center.Furthermore,Caladero,the largest marine products company in Spain,delivers 200,000 tonnes of fish here every year.

Ezhou Huahu Airport,Asia’s first specialized cargo airport,under construction建设中的鄂州花湖机场是亚洲首个专业货运机场

一

2014年，顺丰速运想建自己的机场。

他们选来选去，选中了湖北鄂州市。这是中国内陆最小的地级市，总面积1594 平方公里，人口110多万，与武汉市中心直线距离60公里。

选择鄂州，因为这座小城空域资源、客运航线并不紧张，有利于货运机场作业。鄂州顺丰国际机场建成之后，将在武汉城市圈内形成一个航空客货双枢纽格局。机场、高速公路、京广铁路、武黄城际铁路、长江黄金水道，各种运输方式无缝衔接，形成了一套繁密、高效的联运系统，但仅靠武汉周边货运量，不足以支撑整个机场。鄂州顺丰国际机场要想办得成功，就要建成全国乃至国际中转中心，靠中转带动货源增加。武汉，需要成为全中国的“中心市场”。

二

从国际经验来看，物流中心不一定是港口城市。西班牙萨拉戈萨，距大西洋和地中海都有大约250 公里距离。著名服装品牌商Zara 把自己全球配送中心设在这里；西班牙最大海产品公司Caladero 每年送20万吨鱼到这座城市。

为什么它们会青睐萨拉戈萨呢？第一，萨拉戈萨之前有个美军机场，后来改成货运机场。萨拉戈萨机场是航空货运的天下，没有客运，货机可以尽情起降。第二，虽然萨拉戈萨不是大城市，但它离大城市都不远。

Why Zaragoza? Firstly,a military airport set up by the US armed forces in Zaragoza was later turned into a cargo airport.With no civil aviation flights in the city,it is an ideal location for cargo airplanes to take off and land anytime.Secondly,Zaragoza,though not a big city itself,is not far from big cities.

Similarly,Wuhan boasts a unique geographical advantage in China’s economic landscape.Taking Wuhan as the center,a circle with a radius of 1,000 kilometers covers five nationallevel city clusters that account for 90% of China’s GDP and 80% of the Chinese population.

During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020,pressure has been posed on China’s logistics infrastructure,testing its capability of delivering essential supplies in case of emergency.A huge cluster of cargo air fleets should be able to mobilize hundreds of airplanes to dispatch emergency supplies almost at an instance.If any Chinese city is to be selected as a supply chain platform for emergency supplies,Wuhan definitely stands out among others.

Three

Logistics hubs will naturally attract relevant industrial clusters.When FedEx moved its headquarters to Memphis in the central US,an industrial chain ranging from scientific research,processing and manufacturing,and warehouse logistics emerged in the neighboring areas.According to Robert G.Carson,Vice President of Medtronic,the reason why they came to Memphis was to stay close to the young logistics company called FedEx.

Logistics hubs can and will reshape entire markets,and the market network will become more closely connected.For example,the two previously mentioned enterprises—Zara and Caladero—have formed a peculiar alliance with the Zaragoza Logistics Park.Caladero catches fish from all over Africa and sends them to Johannesburg before shipping them to Spain.

As the consumer demand grows more diversified and individualized,the global supply chain will embrace radical changes.With the change in consumer demand,the supply chain will be closer to consumers in the future,and the era of a logistics boom in China is coming.

According to the national plan,there will be a “national one-twothree traffic circle” (one hour to commute in CBD,two hours to reach city clusters,and three hours to connect with major cities in China) and a “global one-two-three express logistics circle” (one day for domestic delivery,two days for neighboring countries,and three days for major cities across the world) in China by 2035.Logistics,once a weak field in China’s economy,is gradually becoming one of the most outstanding competitive advantages for operating in China.

Over the past few years,China has witnessed faster development in inland cities than in coastal cities.Many inland cities,like Chengdu,Hefei,Zhengzhou,Wuhan,Xi’an,or even the remote Guiyang and Ulanqab,have yielded brilliant results.Besides,some manufacturing and hi-tech companies are also relocating inland.

In the future,new infrastructure projects will also be tilted towards inland sites,and China’s economic network will grow tighter and firmer than ever before.

Entering an era of localization,a batch of logistics centers will rise sharply in inland areas.It is not only a policy of adjustment,but a strategic vision of development.

(FromVariables:Survival Strategies in an Era of Localization,Elephant Press.Translation:Zhu Yaguang)

Ezhou Huahu Airport,Asia’s first specialized cargo airport,under construction建设中的鄂州花湖机场是亚洲首个专业货运机场

按照这样的思路，在中国经济版图上，武汉有独特区位优势。以这里为圆点，1000 公里半径，可以覆盖占中国90%GDP 和80%人口的五大国家级城市群。

2020年疫情考验中国物流，考验其在紧急情况下输送急缺物资的能力。大集群货运机队，要能在瞬间调集上百架飞机，迅速运送应急物资。如果要在全国找一个城市作为应急物资供应链平台，武汉是上上之选。

三

物流中心会带来产业集群。联邦快递将总部搬到美国中部孟菲斯时，孟菲斯周边涌现出从科研、加工制造到仓储、物流的产业链。全球领先医疗科技公司美敦力副总裁罗伯特·卡森说，当初来到孟菲斯，就是“为了能跟一家叫联邦快递的年轻公司离得更近”。

物流中心重塑市场网络，网络中各个节点的联系会变得更加紧密。比如，萨拉戈萨物流园区两家企业Zara 和Caladero，结成了一种奇特联盟。Caladero 从非洲各地捕捞的鱼，先送到约翰内斯堡，再运到西班牙。

当消费者需求更多元化、个性化之后，全球供应链会发生重大变化。随着需求变化，未来供应链会离消费者更近，中国物流大爆发时代即将到来。

按照国家规划，到2035年，中国将形成“全国123 出行交通圈”（都市区1 小时通勤、城市群2 小时通达、全国主要城市3 小时覆盖）和“全球123 快货物流圈”（国内1 天送达、周边国家2 天送达、全球主要城市3 天送达）。物流，将从过去的短板变成中国经济最突出的竞争优势之一。

近年来，内陆中心城市的发展速度超过不少沿海城市。成都、合肥、郑州、武汉、西安，甚至贵阳、乌兰察布都成了耀眼的新星。制造业和高科技企业在向内地迁徙。

展望未来，新的基础设施项目会进一步向内陆地区倾斜。中国经济网络，将被编织得更加牢固、紧密。

本土时代，在内陆地区会崛起一批物流中心。这是一种格局调整，更是一种战略远见。

（摘自《变量：本土时代的生存策略》大象出版社）