GE (NYSE:GE) celebrated the grand opening of its new central logistics center for renewable energy components in Olive Branch, Miss. The facility is part of GE’s strategy to further improve customer response times throughout North America as more wind and solar energy projects are developed and existing power facilities require maintenance. Olive Branch is located 23 miles south of Memphis, Tenn.
GE Energy’s renewable energy services group will use the new logistics center to distribute replacement wind turbine parts and solar technology components. It is located on Polk Lane in Olive Branch, Miss., in a 212,880-square-foot section of a 452,743-square-foot building. The space is more than three times larger than the previous DeSoto County location of GE’s logistics operation. The new center is located near a FedEx hub facility, which will expedite faster, easier distributions.
“GE’s decision to move into the Olive Branch facility and establish a new, expanded, integrated renewables logistics center advances our goals to provide excellent lifecycle service to our customers throughout North and South America,” said Diarmaid Mulholland, general manager of wind services for GE’s renewable energy business.
Additionally, the new center will produce customer-specific kits that include multiple parts for each service activity, which increases productivity by ensuring that all of the parts required for the project are packaged together. The center also will provide and maintain specialized tooling for GE’s field services team. The expanded facility will allow future growth as GE expands its service offerings.
The building received Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver Certification from the U.S. Green Building Council in 2009. The certification is based on a number of design and construction features that save energy and water and minimize landfill waste from the project. Sustainable features of GE’s new logistics center include skylights, upgraded insulation, an efficient warehouse lighting system and highly reflective white “TPO” roofing to reduce cooling loads.