Quality Bicycle Products is purchasing a 19-acre site in East Hempfield Township in Lancaster County to serve as the location for the distributor's upcoming 120,000-square-foot distribution center in Pennsylvania. QBP previously leased a 100,000-square-foot warehouse in Middletown, which has been operational since 2011.
The Minnesota company plans to break ground next spring on the new distribution center, which should be fully operational by spring 2015.
"This will significantly expand our ability to serve independent specialty retailers on the Eastern seaboard," said Dave Smith, QBP site manager.
Smith said the warehouse could eventually expand to 200,000 square feet with capacity for more than 30,000 SKUs, and in most cases, orders can be shipped in one day or less. "We'll have more products and more variety that we can deliver faster than before," he said.?
QBP's Middletown location currently employs 55 full-time and 44 seasonal workers and Smith anticipates hiring more as the new facility ramps up over the next three years.
"We'll be staffing a regional customer service call center and an accounts receivable department at our new location," he said.
The new building will be designed according to LEED and Energy Star standards, which recognize and set requirements for energy efficiency and environmental sustainability. QBP's headquarters in Bloomington, Minnesota, and its Ogden, Utah, distribution center are LEED Gold certified. The company employs more than 600 people at all three locations.
The facility will also include indoor and outdoor bike racks, showers and lockers, and other amenities that encourage employees to bike to work, and the company will work with East Hempfield Township and the county of Lancaster to develop bike and walking paths.
