Global Vehicle Technologies says it is partnering with Caterpillar Logistics Services on a new distribution facility that will improve efficiency and get GVT heavy-duty truck components to its customers faster.
A CLS logistics operation at the U.S.-Mexican border provides both inbound and outbound logistics services. Production materials from GVT manufacturing sites in Great Britain and Europe are routed to the facility in Laredo, Texas. The distribution center at the border also warehouses finished commercial vehicle components produced at GVT’s Queretaro plant in Central Mexico. From Laredo, CLS distributes GVT’s products in the United States, Europe and Asia.
“We are able to greatly improve our overall distribution process and streamline our supply chain,” says Mike Bozich, president and chief executive officer of Seattle-based GVT. “We are able to handle orders more quickly and efficiently. And by following a first-in, first-out inventory program, our customers receive the latest products.”
The key to the new distribution system is a state-of-the-art distribution facility operated by CLS at Laredo at the Mexican border. CLS operates a 300,000-square-foot, two-building facility, providing both inbound and outbound logistics services. The use of CLS optimizes inbound freight movement for GVT, and simplifies outbound delivery to customers, according to Bozich.
“The most significant benefit will be recognized by customers that previously received products from multiple shipping points,” he says. “Several major customers look to benefit from having a single shipping point located on the NAFTA highway, as part of their existing ‘milk run’ for components sourced from Mexico or the Port of Houston.”
CLS, a unit of Caterpillar, has provided logistics services to Caterpillar for 77 years and to outside clients for 19 years. CLS ships more than 10 billion pounds of freight annually. By committing to the Laredo facility, GVT is closing its warehouse activity in Farmington, Conn.
