Global logistics provider Agility is relocating its European head office to Switzerland and restructuring its West European businesses into two new regional areas as it gains the full benefits of integrating the strategic acquisitions of the former PWC Logistics.

Agility has chosen Basel as its European headquarters, citing the Swiss city’s central location within Europe, excellent transport links and facilities and its abundance of well-trained logistics professionals. The move also enables Agility to benefit from the existing infrastructure of its Basel-based business unit.

The enterprise is also reorganizing its national businesses into larger groupings to keep pace with its accelerated growth and developing specialized units that include Defense and Government Services, Project Logistics and Fairs & Events.

Area North will unite the UK, Ireland, Sweden and other Nordic countriesunder the leadership of Chris Price, based in London, UK, while Area Central will combine Germany, Poland and the Benelux countries, reporting to Holger Pünjer in Hamburg, Germany.

Announcing the changes, Beat Simon, Agility’s Chief Executive Officer for Europe, said: “The new structure ensures a better integration of the smaller business units into the global development of trade lanes. As bigger units, they can more effectively represent themselves to partners and more efficiently access the highly specialized resources required by our global business matrix.”

On the choice of Basel, Simon stated that the city, locatedat the heart of the ‘three countries corner’, where Switzerland, Germany and France meet, has always been considered an international hub for freight transport.

“It is also home to majority of our customers that include some of the leading global pharmaceutical and chemical industries, electronics companies, automobile parts suppliers, and construction and engineering firms, as well as numerous high-tech companies and diverse service industries,” Simon said. “Due to the high level of professional training in this ‘tri-national’ area, Agility looks forward to gaining access to skilled specialists who are both multilingual and internationally-oriented.”