Pudong Airport Opens Smart Cargo Station to Speed up Deliveries

Caption: Edited by Yang Jian. Subtitles by Yang Jian.

Credit: Ti Gong

Caption: An automated guided vehicle processes cargo at the new Pudong airport terminal to reduce manual labor.

Shanghai Pudong International Airport launched operations at its new digital and intelligent international cargo terminal on Wednesday to speed up customs clearance and international logistics.

The new facility SMAREX covers 220,000 square meters, equivalent to about 30 standard football pitches. It uses 75 automated guided forklift vehicles and four high-speed sorting lines to double operational efficiency compared to traditional stations.

"Launching operations at the Pudong airport is a defining moment for Swissport in Asia and globally," said Warwick Brady, chief executive officer of Swissport International. The world's leading aviation service provider, headquartered in Zurich, operates the new terminal.

The station includes a 15,000-square-meter cold storage area. Workers can adjust temperatures from minus 60 to 25 degrees Celsius to safeguard medicine and fresh food. An artificial intelligence security screening system also shortens cargo clearance times.

Shanghai processed 4.5 million tons of aviation mail and cargo in 2025. Its cargo volume ranked second among global cities.

The terminal plans to establish a regional delivery network. The goal is to connect Shanghai to global markets within 48 hours.