VAUGHN, Ont. -- UPS Canada formally opened this morning a $70 million expansion of its distribution centre, located just north of Toronto.

The expanded 463,024-sq ft facility is the equivalent to eight football fields. The enlarged "door to the world" -- as the parcel delivery giant dubs it -- more than doubles UPS's package processing capacity for business between Canada and overseas.

The building includes numerous "eco-features," including skylights for more natural light; an energy management system for climate control that automatically detects the amount of sunlight in the building and adjusts the internal temperature accordingly; the expansion of the propane fueling area to facilitate a broader use of propane fuel, and a comprehensive storm water management system.

In opening the expanded facility, Scott Davis, chairman and CEO of UPS, commented on spending $70 million "in the middle of the worst recession in recent history."

"But there's a simple answer," he explained. "UPS sees the same kind of possibilities in Canada that we saw more than 30 years ago when it began operations here. What we see is amazing potential -- a strong and resilient Canadian economy, the unstoppable force of global commerce and a nation of companies ready to emerge stronger from the recession into a new era of global growth."

UPS broke ground on the expansion of the Toronto hub in 2007, recognizing a growing demand among businesses in the GTA, specifically, but across Canada as well.

"You can't look at this building as a stand-alone facility," Davis added. "It's really part of a global web of air and ground facilities, freight and airline fleets, warehouses and retail stores connecting each business to more than 200 countries and territories around the world."