We're connected
From West Flanders, you can travel to other EU capitals in no time, either by car, plane or high-speed train. In West Flanders, you’ll have a market of 400 million consumers on your doorstep, all within a 6-hour drive.
- 400 million consumers
- <6 hours drive
- 60% of Europe's purchasing power
- 500-km radius
Bullseye
West Flanders is perfectly located in the middle of Europe’s major business centres including Paris, Amsterdam, Frankfurt and the Ruhr Valley. And is less than 90 kilometres from the UK.
- Rotterdam 170 km
- Paris 295 km
- London 300 km
- Frankfurt 500 km
Close to Brussels
In West Flanders your company is close to Brussels, the capital of Europe. It’s where many headquarters of the largest international organisations (European Union, NATO, etc.) are located. It’s home to 1,700 European HQs and the second largest centre for journalism in the world after Washington D.C.
- 30 Chambers of Commerce
- 3,800 Diplomats
- 150 law firms specialising in European law
All-in-one
By bringing together all the necessary actors into one platform, RX/Seaport at Port of Zeebrugge is making West Flanders’ logistics future-proof. All data are digitally processed. The final goal is the smooth running of both the physical traffic and document flows.
- Optimise your supply chain
- Transparency
- Increased operational efficiency
- Lower error burden
Transport
Our seaports in Ostend and Zeebrugge connect your company to the European mainland and beyond in just a few hours time. West Flanders is ideally equipped to help you unlock Europe’s market potential through multimodal transport and excellent logistics. Our road and railroad systems are among the world’s densest.
- 86 worldwide liner services from seaports
- 41.6 million tonnes of cargo from seaports
- 197 highway kms
- #3 worldwide logistical performance index
Airports
West Flanders has two international airports, Ostend and Kortrijk-Wevelgem: while the Ostend terminal handles freight transport, private jets, business flights, training flights and ad hoc flights for special events, Kortrijk-Wevelgem has a growing reputation as a fast, flexible and accessible business airport.
- 23 European destinations from Ostend
- 420,000 passengers in Ostende
- Kortrijk-Wevelgem specialises in business aviation
- 1,900-metre long runway at Kortrijk-Wevelgem
Supply chain
Predictable and reliable supply chains guaranteed. West Flanders has an extensive trucking network: efficient transit connections, short trucking times to European cities, direct deliveries to customers’ warehouses, competitive rates, truck loading combined with multiple custom-status shipments.
- Lille < 1hr
- Charles-De-Gaulle airport 5 hrs
- Frankfurt 6 hrs
- London Heathrow airport 9 hrs
Inland waterways
Inland waterways play an increasingly important role in connecting inland industrial areas to sea ports. Several inland terminals have been developed. The result is more sustainable and more economic transport. These are built at a distance from (but connected to) the traditional, often congested, roads.
- 299 kms inland waterways
- Interconnected inland river terminals
- 2 ha at Avelgem container terminal
- 5 ha at River Terminal Wielsbeke
Logistics centre
Looking for your own logistics centre? West Flanders has an outstanding port infrastructure in Zeebrugge and Ostend. It means you will be very close to your customers. Very efficient warehousing, punctuality in delivery and the lowest prices. The World Bank says we are number one.
- World's leading port in handling new cars: 2 million/year
- European hub for liquified natural gas
- World #1 competitively priced international shipments
- World #1 best on-time delivery
R&D base
Looking for your own R&D base? West Flanders, and our business ecosystem in particular, has a proven track record in R&D. The people in West Flanders are extremely skilled due to superior higher education. Furthermore, we are known for our very high productivity.
- #4 worldwide educational system
- #3 worldwide innovation indicator
- #6 worldwide for quality scientific research centres
- #1 in Europe for cooperation between science and SMEs
Sales & marketing
Looking for your own sales & marketing office? Our people like doing business. We are multilingual: three official languages + English. We know how to manage different cultures: West Flanders is positioned in the middle of France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Luxembourg.
- 3 languages: Dutch, French AND German
- English proficiency 11th worldwide
- 4 days - the time it takes to start a business
- 2 in 3 survive for longer than the pivotal first 5 years
Manufacturing hub
Looking for your own manufacturing hub? West Flanders has great locations to offer. The outstanding manufacturing companies in our region are proof that West Flanders knows what a manufacturer needs: skilled people, high-quality education, very high productivity and good return-on-investment.
- #4 worldwide labour productivity
- #3 worldwide most talented workforce
- 250 companies in mechaincal engineering and mechatronics
- Outstanding R&D&I facilities