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Express

In the Express division, we transport urgent documents and goods reliably and on time from door to door. International time-definite shipments are our core business.

The division’s main product is Time Definite International (TDI), a cross-border transport and delivery service with predefined, standardized transit times. Our expertise in customs clearance keeps shipments moving as a prerequisite in ensuring fast and reliable door-to-door service.

We also provide industry-specific services to round out our TDI product. For example, our Medical Express transport solution, which is tailored specifically to companies in the life sciences and healthcare sectors, offers various types of thermal packaging for temperature-controlled, chilled and frozen contents.

Around 288 million TDI shipments were transported worldwide in 2023. We estimate our global market share at around 43 % on the basis of a survey from 2021.

A global express network

~3 million

customers

~116,000

Employees

>295

dedicated aircraft

~115,000

service points

DHL Express employee

>500

airports serviced

Our virtual airline

Our global air freight network is operated by multiple airlines, some of which are wholly owned by the Group. The combination of our own and purchased capacities allows us to respond flexibly to fluctuating demand. The following graphic illustrates how our available freight capacity is organized and offered on the market. Most of the freight capacity is used for TDI, our main product. If any cargo space remains on our own flights, we sell it to customers in the air freight sector. The largest buyer of remaining capacity is the DHL Global Forwarding business unit.

Available capacity

Infographic: Express freight capacity

Keeping our customer service promise and standards

In order to verify the keeping of our service promise as a global network operator and to further improve it, we monitor the satisfaction and changing requirements of our customers, for example through our Insanely Customer Centric Culture program and with the Net Promoter Approach.

At our quality control centers, we track shipments across the globe and adjust the processes dynamically as required. All premium products are tracked until they are delivered.

We conduct regular reviews of operational safety, compliance with standards and quality of service at our facilities in cooperation with government authorities. Approximately 450 locations have been certified by the Transported Asset Protection Association (TAPA).

DHL Express products & services