FedEx Ground Selects Atlanta-Area Site for New Southern Distribution Facility

PITTSBURGH--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 9, 2004
 
New Automated Terminal in Cobb County Part of Company's $1.8 Billion Expansion Plan To Nearly Double Daily Package Volume Capacity FedEx Ground, the small-package ground delivery unit of FedEx Corp. (NYSE:FDX), has chosen a 75-acre site in Kennesaw, Ga., as the location for a new 247,000 square-foot automated distribution facility to be opened by summer 2006.

The new facility, which will replace the current FedEx Ground terminal in Marietta, is part of the company's $1.8 billion network expansion plan. Announced in September 2002, the network investment includes the construction of nine new hubs, the expansion of 30 existing hubs and the relocation of nearly 290 pickup and delivery terminals. In response to increasing customer demand, the nationwide expansion will nearly double the company's average daily hub volume package capacity to 5.3 million packages by the end of fiscal year 2010. Four new hubs currently under construction in the metro areas of Cincinnati, Dallas, Memphis and Hagerstown, Md., are scheduled to open in 2005 and 2006.

The new distribution center will be triple the size of the existing Marietta facility and will have a workforce of approximately 475 employees and independent contractors, more than double the current number. Equipped with the latest material handling systems, the facility will open as an automated terminal capable of processing 15,000 packages per hour and is expected to be converted to a 322,000-square-foot hub in fiscal year 2010. After the expansion, the hub will be able to sort 30,000 packages per hour and is projected to have a workforce of nearly 800 employees and independent contractors.

"The Marietta facility is an important part of our ongoing efforts to increase the size, speed and efficiency of our ground network," said Daniel J. Sullivan, president and chief executive officer of FedEx Ground. "This state-of-the-art automated terminal will complement our existing operations in the Atlanta area and will enhance what our customers already tell us is the best small-package ground pickup and delivery service in the industry."

Located at the intersection Old Cobb Highway and Airport Road in Kennesaw, the new distribution center will be the second major FedEx Ground facility in the Atlanta area. FedEx Ground currently operates a hub in Ellenwood, as well as local pickup and delivery terminals in Ellenwood, Marietta and Norcross. The company has a workforce of more than 1,400 employees and independent contractors in the Atlanta area.

The site for the new operations was chosen for its proximity to customers, major highways and a strong local labor pool. Another key factor was the distance from the 245,000 square-foot Ellenwood hub, which recently completed a $21.5 million expansion and upgrade to its material handling systems.

Yates Construction of Atlanta is the general contractor for the new facility, which is being designed by architectural engineers Pickering Firm, Inc., of Memphis, Tenn. Miller & Martin PLLC, a law firm with offices in Atlanta, Chattanooga and Nashville, is serving as the real estate and tax consultant for the project.