Higher Standard

The Robert Bosch Group’s outsourcing relationship with third-party logistics provider Standard Integrated Logistics Corporation of Columbia, SC, has netted Bosch significant cost savings, says Standard general manager Randall Waldrup. For instance, Standard’s North Charleston, SC, Appian Way location has been designated a foreign trade zone, which allows Bosch, an international manufacturer, to postpone duty until products are forwarded to customers.

According to Waldrup, the Bosch Corp. has also been active in the Minority Supplier Initiative that supports minority-owned businesses in the automotive industry, partnering with Key Logistics Solutions, a minority-owned company. “Because of that partnership,” Waldrup says, “we can now purchase inventory for Bosch and sell it back to them for resale to their customers, value-added.”

STANDARD INTEGRATED LOGISTICS CORPORATION

Headquarters: Columbia, SC

Annual sales: $130 million

Total employees: 3,000

Distribution centers: Charleston, Atlanta, Dallas, Memphis, Ontario; 57 locations in all, in 13 states

Warehouse size: Largest — 650,000 sq. ft.; smallest — 40,000 sq. ft.

North Charleston, SC, Appian Way and Pepperdam facilities

Total SKUs: 1,000

Shipments per month: 2,500

Total processing per month: 20,000

Material handling equipment: 15 Toyota 5,000-lb. forklifts