UPS Logistics Opens Service Center in Laredo
The first phase of what UPS Logistics Group calls development of a logistics center in Laredo, TX, is finished, with the opening this week of a 32,000-square-foot facility to support maquiladoras, Mexican factories and related production facilities.
UPS Logistics said that the hub would increase its Mexico-to-Canada distribution abilities. The facility will provide general support, warehousing, crossdocking and fulfillment.
"We provide a consolidation point for goods traveling to and from Mexico from the United States and Canada," Tom Page, director of Latin American operations for UPS Logistics Group, said. "The Laredo facility is a quick-release distribution point, where goods can be received, processed and forwarded to their final destination very efficiently. This is significant to maquiladoras in the region whose very survival depends on just-in-time manufacturing processes and speed to market. By increasing our ability to rapidly deliver goods, our customers can keep manufacturing lines moving."
Page said that the facility will command up to 88 trailers and feature a border dispatch-management system, and advanced fire-suppressant technology.
It will also house U.S. Customs and Mexican customs brokers to process shipments between the countries.
The facility now offers a dedicated fleet of trucks that feature satellite tracking, and truckload, less-than-truckload and small-package shipments.
UPS LG said that it will offer a variety of value-added services from the facility, including shipment processing through multiple carriers, on-site labeling services, light assembly and a maquiladora service model with a supplier-managed inventory program.
"Laredo is one of the largest ports of entry for Mexico," Page said. "This allows us to provide a variety of services in multiple industries."
Laredo is part of a transportation network that includes border operations in El Paso and San Diego. The company's principal routes include Monterrey, Guadalajara, Puebla and Mexico City.