Timing is everything in FedEx expansion
FedEx Ground is undergoing an overall expansion — and its new facility in Orion Township is part of that growth.
Timing is everything for FedEx when it comes to opening up new facilities, says Allison Sobczak, corporate communications for FedEx Ground. While Metro Detroiters have yet to greet trick-or-treaters at their doors, FedEx is in full swing of their busiest season — the winter holidays.
The new 190,000-square-foot, USD 30 million facility replaces two Metro Detroit FedEx facilities in Pontiac and Sterling Heights, which have been closed. Their operations are transferred to the new facility in Orion Township.
FedEx Ground chose Orion Township because of its access to major highways, the local labor pool and its business-friendly reputation. “Most importantly, we look for proclivity to our customer base and from what I understand a lot of the growth in the area has been north of the city.”
FedEx Ground has facilities in Livonia and Ann Arbor to handle the rest of the greater Detroit area.
The Orion Township facility will utilize much more automation in processing packages than the facilities it replaces. It is one of 300 other expanded local facilities in the nation.
Sobczak says reduced transit time is part of FedEx Ground’s overall expansion plan. “In 2003 in more than half of our shipping lanes, about 65,000, we have been able to decrease transit times.”
With the opening of the Orion Township facility, transit times from Detroit to Florida have decreased from four days to three, says Sobczak “Overall these facilities speed up our network, they improve package processing with the improved automation and minimize package handling.”
