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Logistics in Hamm: canal port, railway junction and motorway crossroads

With around 180,000 inhabitants, Hamm is one of the larger cities in Westphalia. It lies on the River Lippe at the eastern edge of the Ruhr, and for most of the 20th century, coal mining, the railway and the wire industry defined its economy. The last colliery closed in 2010, but the city's transport links have remained its greatest asset.

The Stadthafen Hamm on the Datteln–Hamm Canal is Germany's second-largest public canal port. It connects road, rail and inland waterway, and handles grain, food and animal feed, steel and scrap, building materials and chemical products. Hamm has also long been an important railway junction, with one of the larger marshalling yards in Germany. In Uentrop, power generation sites add to the industrial profile.

Metal processing (especially wire and steel products), food production, trade and logistics are strong sectors today, supported by the Hamm-Lippstadt University of Applied Sciences. Many distribution centres have chosen the area because the A1 and A2 meet close to the city. For British suppliers, this makes Hamm a practical delivery point both for the Ruhr and for the wider Westphalian market. The Maximilianpark with its glass elephant is a well-known local landmark.

The route from the UK to Hamm

We cross the Channel by ferry from Dover to Calais or Dunkirk, or with Le Shuttle from Folkestone. From the continental coast, one option leads through Belgium via Liège to Aachen, then along the A4 and A1 via Cologne and Wuppertal to the Kamener Kreuz, where the A2 turns east towards Hamm. Alternatively, vehicles pass through the Netherlands on the A12 via Arnhem, enter Germany at Emmerich on the A3 and follow the A2 across the northern Ruhr from Oberhausen to Hamm.

The A2 runs along the southern edge of the city with junctions for Hamm and Hamm-Uentrop, while the A1 passes to the west. The Kamener Kreuz, one of the busiest interchanges in the region, lies about 12 km to the south-west. From there, the A1 continues north to Münster and Bremen, and the A2 continues east to Bielefeld and Hanover.

Customs between Great Britain and the EU

Deliveries from Great Britain to Hamm cross into the EU, so they need an export declaration in the UK and an import declaration in the EU. The sender and the importer must each have an EORI number. GVMS matches the declarations to the vehicle via the Goods Movement Reference at Dover or the Channel Tunnel. Please organise the declarations with your customs agent ahead of the collection, as DAGO Express does not prepare customs declarations.

Freight forwarder for all shipments between the UK and Hamm

DAGO Express works with a network of more than 50,000 vehicles in 38 countries, and over 15,000 companies book their transports through us. If a vehicle breaks down, a replacement vehicle continues the journey so that your delivery is not left waiting. Verified partners with a valid EU licence carry out international freight transport, and dangerous goods go with partners who also hold an ADR licence. Our team monitors each shipment around the clock, on weekends and bank holidays alike.

Insurance through the Schunck Group covers your goods up to 8.33 SDR per kilogram of gross weight, with additional cover for higher-value goods available at short notice. As soon as the booking is confirmed, a tracking link is sent to you, and emails follow at collection and delivery. The DAGO ShipperHub lets regular shippers manage orders, check ETAs, follow KPIs and export real-time reports to PDF or Excel, and it can be integrated with ERP systems.

For an instant price, enter postcodes, dimensions and weight in the online calculator, and the result is ready in seconds. You can also book in the DAGO app or ask for a quote by email. From Hamm, our network extends to the Netherlands, Denmark, Poland and the rest of Europe.