Europe’s Industrial Supply Chains Are Evolving. Are You?

Europe’s industrial supply chains are evolving rapidly, and contract logistics is at the centre of that transformation as our customers look to gain greater control, improve visibility and reduce complexity across their European operations. What is changing is not just how supply chains are structured, but how they are managed end-to-end.

For industrial leaders, the question is no longer whether change is happening, but whether their supply chain strategies are keeping pace and whether they are able to access the capabilities required to deliver that change in practice.

The past twenty years have seen industrial logistics in Europe shift from a largely outsourced, operational function into a strategically embedded capability. Today, it plays a central role in enabling businesses to scale, compete and respond to change, and this is not a short term trend. The European contract logistics market is projected to grow from approximately $96.7 billion in 2026 to over $114 billion by 2031¹, reflecting structural demand driven by industrial complexities rather than volume alone. 

Where logistics was once treated as a cost centre, it is now a key driver of performance, directly influencing resilience, speed to market and customer outcomes.

The End of Managing Logistics in Silos

Traditionally, industrial companies managed multiple providers across warehousing, handling and transport, but one of the most significant developments in European logistics is the shift toward end-to-end operating models, bringing everything into a single, coordinated framework.

What differentiates this in practice is the ability to connect these capabilities through infrastructure, technology and operations. Across our network, we are doing this by integrating ports, inland terminals, logistics parks, contract logistics operations and multimodal transport into one connected system rather than operating them as separate services.

This shift has accelerated in response to rising levels of disruption. Around 80% of European enterprises have experienced supply chain constraints in recent years², exposing the limitations of fragmented models and placing greater emphasis on control and simplicity. The difference is coordination, not consolidation. By bringing these elements together into a single operating model, our customers are gaining far greater control of their operations.

The Power of Proximity in European Logistics Networks

Europe’s geography continues to shape how trade networks are designed and operated. Its dense industrial base spanning key corridors such as the UK, Benelux and Germany means a choice of location can have a direct and significant impact on performance. As supply chains evolve, companies are having to rethink how close inventory should be to production sites, ports and end markets.

By positioning inventory closer to key gateways and demand centres through strategically located hubs such as our Logistics Park at London Gateway and our inland terminal network, our customers are able to reduce lead times, minimise inland transport and streamline handling, enabling faster product to market routes with fewer handling steps. This becomes even more powerful when combined with multimodal connectivity. Because we operate on port, rail, road and inland networks, we are able to give our customers flexibility in how goods move, not just where they are stored.

In practice, this means contract logistics is no longer just about storage but designing and operating distribution models that integrate global trade flows with regional demand in a single, optimised network.

Visibility Is Now the Differentiator

As operations become more complex, supply chain visibility has emerged as a defining capability, but across Europe only around 6% of companies report having it in full³. At the same time, automation and digital investment are accelerating rapidly. However, many organisations are still limited by fragmented systems and disconnected data. The advantage lies in integration.

By combining inventory, transport and operational data within our control tower environments, we provide our customers with real-time visibility across their entire logistics operation, enabling faster decision making, more accurate planning and improved performance in multiple markets.

This is not just about transparency, it’s about the capacity to control, giving customers the ability to anticipate disruption, respond dynamically and maintain continuity in increasingly complex supply chains.

How Contract Logistics Is Moving Closer to Production

Another major evolution in European trade is the expansion into value-added and industrial services. What we are seeing in practice is logistics moving upstream and downstream into production and lifecycle operations. Our contract logistics sites support our customers with activities such as assembly, testing, spare parts management and product customisation, integrating these directly into operational flows.

This fundamentally changes the role of logistics. Rather than acting as a handoff point, it becomes part of the production system itself. For our customers, this reduces operational friction, removes unnecessary handling and enables greater flexibility across the product lifecycle. The opportunity is not just efficiency but simplification of the entire operating model.

Why Resilience Will Continue to Reshape Strategies

Recent disruptions, combined with ongoing geopolitical uncertainties, have fundamentally reshaped priorities across European logistics. Resilience is now built into how logistics is designed and delivered.

For our customers, this means moving beyond static supply chains toward more flexible, adaptive models. Through our integrated network, which spans ports, inland terminals and multimodal transport, we enable them to shift routes, rebalance inventory and maintain continuity when conditions change.

This capability comes from scale and connectivity. It is not about any single asset, but about how the network operates as a coordinated whole, and the organisations pulling ahead are those embedding this flexibility into their model from the outset, and working with partners who can deliver it operationally.

Getting the Fundamentals Right

Despite these changes, industrial contract logistics remains grounded in execution, and success still depends on delivering reliably through four core areas:

• Inventory management and reporting
• Picking, packing and container handling
• Customs clearance and transport coordination
• End-to-end support
   

These are the capabilities we deliver for our customers every day, but increasingly through integrated, technology enabled operations that connect these functions in locations, modes and markets. Consistency is defining high performance, and delivering these fundamentals seamlessly, at scale and throughout Europe, is where integrated models are creating a clear advantage.

Is Your Logistics Strategy Keeping Pace?

Industrial supply chains are evolving fast, and contract logistics is driving that evolution, but not all organisations are keeping up. Those still relying on fragmented, low visibility models risk falling behind in a market defined by complexity, disruption and rising expectations.

Our customers are already making this transition, moving toward integrated, end-to-end models that combine infrastructure, operations and technology to give them greater visibility, control and resilience.

The question is no longer whether change is happening. It’s whether your strategy is evolving, and whether you have access to the capabilities required to make that happen.

To learn how we are helping industrial customers evolve their contract logistics across Europe, explore our end-to-end supply chain solutions.

¹ Mordor Intelligence, Europe Contract Logistics Market – Growth, Trends and Forecasts (2026–2031)

² Eurostat, Global Value Chain Survey (2021–2023)

³ GEODIS, Supply Chain Worldwide Survey