Safelite Group Successfully Expands Supply Chain
600,000 Square Feet of Warehouse Space Creates Unmatched Product Availability
COLUMBUS, Ohio – May 10, 2011 - Safelite® Group is pleased to announce additional expansion of its supply chain with the first shipment of vehicle glass to the U.S. pacific northwest from the newest distribution center in Airdrie, Canada in March 2011.
With this milestone, Safelite® Group offers the most efficient supply chain in the North American vehicle glass replacement industry with the completion of the nearly three-year long effort investing in new distribution centers and warehouses. Since 2008, Safelite® and its Canadian counterpart Belron® Canada (both owned by BelronSA, the largest vehicle glass replacement company in the world) have opened four new distribution centers:
• The Ontario, Calif. facility opened in June 2009, serving the western half of the United States
• Braselton, Ga., opened in August 2010, serving the eastern half of the United States
• Montreal, Canada opened in November 2010, serving the eastern half of Canada
• Airdrie, Canada opened in December 2010, serving the western half of Canada and the pacific northwest of the United States
Located at 1022 Hamilton Blvd NE, Airdrie, AB T4A 0K8, the facility is approximately 100,000 square feet and carries about 90,000 units of inventory covering roughly 9000 SKUs.
The Airdrie distribution center is the first implementation of Belron’s global Warehouse Management System, which automates inventory control and operational functions within the facility. It will subsequently be rolled out to all the U.S. and Canadian distribution center and warehouses in the next year.
In addition, Safelite® has relocated, expanded or added 31 new warehouses (bringing the total count up to 87) within two years, increasing product variety and availability. The SKU count increased by one-third. This has quadrupled the distribution square footage for U.S. inventory, totaling 600,000.
“The focus on expanding our supply chain allows us to more quickly and efficiently get the right vehicle glass parts to the right place at the right time so that our customers don’t have to wait for service,” said Dino Lanno, Safelite’s senior vice president of supply chain and manufacturing. “I congratulate all of our team members – from those that researched and assessed our supply chain capabilities to those involved in the site selection and construction to the distribution center and warehouse staff who get the job done every day.”
About Safelite® Group
Safelite® Group, a subsidiary of Belron®, is a multi-faceted vehicle glass and claims management service organization based in Columbus, Ohio. The company, which has been in business since 1947, is comprised of four major business operations that include vehicle glass repair and replacement services, Safelite AutoGlass®; Safelite® Solutions and Alliance Claims Solutions® which offer fleet and insurance claims management services; Service AutoGlass®, a wholesale and distribution operation; and Safelite Glass Corp., a manufacturing and distribution business unit. The company employs more than 10,000 people throughout the United States.