Caterpillar Logistics, a wholly owned subsidiary of Caterpillar Inc., this week announced plans to add a new parts distribution center in California. The site is located in the Tejon Ranch Commerce Center at the junction of Interstate 5 and Highway 99 in Central California. With excellent accessibility to major airports and highways, this location will ensure rapid delivery of Cat service parts to dealers and customers, the company said.

The new 400,000-square-foot facility will employ 100 to 150 people and is scheduled to be operational in late 2012. The California Distribution Center and the new Spokane, Wash., facility announced earlier this year along with new facilities opened in Waco, Texas, and
Clayton, Ohio, in 2009 and 2011 respectively, will represent a significant increase in capacity and capability for Caterpillar’s service parts distribution network in the United States.

“This investment, part of a multiyear expansion and enhancement of the global Cat parts distribution network, demonstrates our deep commitment to Caterpillar customers,” said Steve Larson, vice president of Caterpillar Inc. and chairman and president of Cat Logistics.

Like the Spokane and Clayton facilities, the California facility will utilize Service Parts Management, a global solution that replaces multiple legacy software systems supporting the Cat parts network. Common systems and processes developed and optimized through previous facility implementations will be leveraged to maximize the efficiency of the start-up and ongoing operations.

Cat Logistics is also implementing network enhancements in Dubai, United Arab Emirates; Grimbergen, Belgium; Melbourne, Australia; and Shanghai, China, and has additional projects in the planning stage in key growth markets.

Headquartered in Morton, Ill., Caterpillar Logistics provides supply chain solutions and services to its parent company, Caterpillar Inc., and more than 50 other leading corporations throughout the world. Cat Logistics operates more than 108 offices and facilities in 23 countries on six continents.