From left, Georgia Ports Chief Commercial Officer Cliff Pyron, World Distribution Services Operations Manager Jim Kelley, WDS President Duncan Wright, WDS Customer Service Specialist Dana Radford, WDS Vice President Warehousing & Distribution Dale Young and WDS Strategic Improvement Manager Mike Taylor attend the company’s grand opening Nov. 6 in Pooler, Ga.
World Distribution Services (WDS), a Cleveland-based logistics and transportation company, is expanding its operations to more than half a million square feet in the Savannah market, with a new 280,000 square-foot distribution center in Pooler. Company officials held a grand opening Nov. 6 at the new warehouse, expected to provide up to 50 jobs.
Duncan Wright, president of WDS, said the additional space will support business growth and allow the company to take on new clients. “Our existing facility has been at capacity for more than two years,” said Wright. “Based on the increased freight traffic moving through Savannah, we wanted to help support the growth the GPA is driving. This facility positions WDS for future success in the market.”
The new distribution center more than doubles the WDS presence in Savannah, adding to an existing 250,000 square-foot operation. World Distribution Services offers warehousing and inventory management, transloading, retail distribution, and value-added services such as pick-and-pack, and e-commerce fulfillment at its two locations on Morgan Lakes Industrial Boulevard in Pooler. The warehouses are less than 10 miles from the Port of Savannah’s Garden City Terminal.
“Private investment in logistics extends and expands the reach of the Georgia Ports Authority to new customers,” GPA Chief Commercial Officer Cliff Pyron said. “Not only do 3PLs bring customers with them when they locate here, but available warehouse and cross-dock capacity is an important factor for companies establishing new supply routes.”
According to Cushman Wakefield, the Savannah market comprises 79 million square feet of industrial space. Another 8.7 million square feet are under construction, for an 11 percent increase in inventory. Pyron noted there is enough land permitted for private development to accommodate another 130 million square feet of distribution center space within 30 miles of the port – nearly twice the area’s current industrial space.
