After scouring the Dallas/Ft. Worth area for the location of a third distribution hub, FedEx Ground, an operating unit of FedEx Corp. (NYSE:FDX), bought a 100-acre site in tiny Hutchins, Texas, where it plans to break ground for a new 330,000+ square-foot distribution hub to be opened by spring 2005. Located at the intersection of I-45 and Cleveland Road in Hutchins, the new distribution center will feature the latest automated package-sortation technology and will be the first of 10 such facilities built over the next six years as part of FedEx Ground's $1.8 billion network expansion plan. The nationwide expansion will nearly double the company's average daily volume capacity from 2.5 million to 4.8 million packages in response to increasing customer demand. Fed Ex said it chose the site for the new Hutchins hub based on its proximity to customers' distribution centers and major highways, as well as its access to a strong local employee base. It will be the third major FedEx Ground facility in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, the company operates a hub in Fort Worth and an automated terminal in Irving. FedEx Ground purchased the site from David Disierse and will break ground in early September. Three additional FedEx Ground hubs are slated for opening in 2005 and 2006 in the metropolitan areas of Hagerstown, MD., Cincinnati, OH, and Memphis, TN.