Stuttgart, October 18, 2023 – PartsCloud, the Stuttgart-based LaaS (Logistics-as-a-Service) start-up that digitizes spare parts logistics for engineering and plant construction, has announced its expansion to the USA. The business has opened its first warehouse in Chicago and cooperates with the internationally renowned transport and logistics company Gebrüder Weiss from Austria.
The expansion of the network to the USA is an important step for PartsCloud that emphasizes the vision of the start-up founded in 2021: creating a global logistics network that people can use through a simple interface. The Industry Advisory Board brings together many of the industry’s major players.
With investments of some 2.5 million euros so far, made in pre-seed funding rounds, from SquareOne, Johannes Plehn (founder of Seven Senders) and Rainer Hundsdörfer (former CEO of Heidelberger Druckmaschinen) among others, PartsCloud is well prepared to quickly develop the American market. The first customer has already signed a contract.
The costs caused by machine downtimes in production plants provide an indication of the size of the market potential of the PartsCloud solution. On average, these businesses lose 13.5 million euros per month.
Gebrüder Weiss is considered the world’s oldest logistics company and operates 180 locations in 34 countries today. In the USA, the company has been present with its own country organization since 2017. The cooperation with Gebrüder Weiss enables PartsCloud to smoothly transfer its established standard operating model and its fulfillment processes in Germany to the USA.
“In Gebrüder Weiss, we have won over a partner for our platform model that ideally prepares us for expanding to North, Central, and South America. We are proud to work with a logistics provider as experienced as Gebrüder Weiss,” says Benjamin Reichenecker, CEO of PartsCloud.
Gebrüder Weiss, too, is excited about the partnership, according to Lothar Thoma, Managing Director Air & Sea at Gebrüder Weiss: “Spare parts logistics in engineering and plant construction is very complex, and we can provide support here based on our many years of logistics know-how. Moreover, we believe in the business model of PartsCloud: there still is a large potential for standardization and digitization in industrial spare parts logistics. Also, the chemistry between us simply worked right from the start.”
Engineering and plant construction is one of Germany’s leading export and innovation sectors but is facing some major digital challenges. “Spare parts procurement is a critical factor to maintain and further increase Germany’s competitiveness. Our LaaS platform puts our customers in full control and offers standardized interfaces for efficient logistics,” Reichenecker adds.
Apart from expanding to the USA, PartsCloud also plans to expand to Asia and to other regions such as Mexico, the UK and the Middle East.
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About PartsCloud
PartsCloud was founded by the engineers Benjamin Reichenecker and Fabian Gemmecke, based on the vision to digitize and facilitate spare parts logistics for engineering and plant construction. The company offers a LaaS platform enabling small and medium-sized businesses to manage their fulfillment and their warehouse logistics by digital means.
About Gebrüder Weiss
Based in Lauterach (Austria), Gebrüder Weiss Holding AG is a global full-service logistics provider. The history of the family business in the transport sector covers more than 500 years – today, some 8,400 employees provide customized services in the area of transport and logistics at 180 company-owned locations.