by logisticsplus | Sep 9, 2015 | News
Logistics Plus (LP) was contacted recently by the Great American Stations Project to prepare a case study on how Erie Union Station was converted for commercial use. Amtrak® established the Great American Stations Project in 2006 to educate communities on the benefits of redeveloping train stations, offer tools to community leaders to preserve their stations, and provide the appropriate Amtrak resources. The case study documents Logistics Plus founder and CEO Jim Berlin’s quest to restore the old station, create a cool vibe for his company, and support economic development of downtown Erie. The author of the case study summarizes the keys to the successful commercialization of Erie Union Station as follows:
- LP renovated the station to suit modern office and commercial tenants
- Experimented with a tenant mix that responds to local market demands
- Station was one of the first large-scale building rehabilitation projects in Midtown
- LP continues to participate in wider efforts to support neighborhood redevelopment
- Renovation maintained the station’s historical integrity.
Thank you to Patrick Kidd, Senior Communications Specialist for Great American Stations Projects and Amtrak Archives for producing this case study in support of train station development. You can read the complete case study by clicking the image below. You can also download a PDF copy of the case study by clicking the thumbnail image shown above.
by logisticsplus | Sep 1, 2015 | News
As announced last week, Logistics Plus begins its 20th year of operations this month. To celebrate the company’s rich history, we’ll periodically share an artifact, picture, story or news clipping from the past. Hopefully some (or many) of you will find this interesting – or at least a little nostalgic.
To kick things off, here’s a fun little artifact – one of the company’s first company brochures! While the graphics and design have much to be desired, there’s no denying the early signs of our passion for excellence with statements like “Logistics IS details” and “Sweating the details to save you time and money.” Although we might have been able to “fly below the radar” in the past, we understand that there are still “a lot of high flying logistics companies you can choose from” today. That’s why we continue to work hard to earn our customers’ trust by going above and beyond the call of duty to ensure their complete satisfaction and total success in all aspects of logistics.
If you’re a current Logistics Plus customer, we thank you for your support and your business. If you’re new to Logistics Plus, we invite you to give us a try on your next LTL freight, truckload or international shipment. We’d also be happy reviewing your entire freight spend by digging through the details to see if we can help save you time and money.
by logisticsplus | Aug 24, 2015 | News
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Logistics Plus Begins 20th Year of Operations
Company has been providing transportation and logistics solutions since August 1996
ERIE, PENNSYLVANIA, August 24, 2015 – Logistics Plus Inc., a worldwide provider of transportation, logistics and supply chain solutions, will be celebrating the company’s 20th year of operations over the next twelve months. The company is planning a variety of customer promotions and employee events in the coming year in recognition of its forthcoming 20th anniversary in August 2016.
It all started in August 1996 when GE Transportation, a division of General Electric and a locomotive pioneer, gave Logistics Plus founder and CEO, Jim Berlin, a one-year, three-person purchase order to help manage the domestic transportation of parts from more than 1,000 U.S. suppliers. That relationship would grow into a worldwide global supply chain partnership taking the company to Mexico, India, China, Indonesia, and beyond. In 1999, Logistics Plus began growing and diversifying its customer base, adding additional clients within the U.S. and around the world.
As his business grew, Berlin needed to find a global headquarters that would be the right fit for the company’s expanding staff and international culture. The result was the $2 million purchase of the 100,000 square foot historic Union Station in downtown Erie, Pennsylvania in 2003. Following significant renovations, Berlin would hoist flags at the top of the building to signify the many countries and nationalities represented by his employees – a tradition that continues today.
In 2011, Logistics Plus made an important strategic acquisition when it purchased Horizon Logistics with offices located in Dallas, Texas; Lexington, North Carolina; and San Francisco, California. The acquisition would add additional talent, service capabilities, and warehousing space to its growing network. Additional warehousing capacity was recently acquired when the company purchased the old Skinner Engine building in downtown Erie in early 2014. Berlin has also created or invested in a number of other related companies, including NTL, a national truckload services company; LP Linguistic Solutions, a language translation company; and Lynx Fulfillment, a dedicated warehousing and fulfillment company.
Today, as the company enters its 20th year, Logistics Plus has $120 million in annual sales, more than 1,000 active customers, over 380 employees, and nearly 50 offices in 20 countries worldwide. The company was named to the Inc. 5000 list in 2014 for being one of the fastest-growing transportation and logistics companies in the country. This past year the company has received recognition as a top workplace by the DevelopErie economic development agency, a top 50 freight broker by Transport Topics magazine, and a great supply chain partner by SupplyChainBrain magazine.
To learn more about the company and its history, please visit www.logisticsplus.com/about-us
About Logistics Plus
Logistics Plus Inc. provides freight transportation, warehousing, global logistics, and supply chain management solutions through a worldwide network of talented and caring professionals. Founded in Erie, PA by local entrepreneur Jim Berlin nearly 20 years ago, Logistics Plus has been repeatedly recognized as one of the fastest-growing transportation and logistics companies in the country. With a strong passion for excellence, its 350+ employees put the “Plus” in logistics by doing the big things properly, and the countless little things, that together ensure complete customer satisfaction and success.
The Logistics Plus® network includes offices located in Erie, PA; Fresno, CA; Los Angeles, CA; San Francisco, CA; Evansville, IN; Detroit, MI; Kansas City, MO; Charlotte, NC; Lexington, NC; Buffalo, NY; Cleveland, OH; Charleston, SC; Greenville, SC; Nashville, TN; Dallas, TX; Fort Worth, TX; Laredo, TX; Houston, TX; Australia; Bahrain; Belgium; Canada; Chile; China; Colombia; Egypt; France; Germany; India; Indonesia; Kazakhstan; Libya; Mexico; Poland; Saudi Arabia; Turkey; United Kingdom; and additional agents around the world. For more information, visit www.logisticsplus.com or follow @LogisticsPlus on Twitter.
Media Contact:
Scott G. Frederick
Vice President, Marketing
Logistics Plus Inc.
(814) 240-6881
scott.frederick@logisticsplus.com
by logisticsplus | May 4, 2015 | News
With the arrival of spring, Logistics Plus raised the flags on top of its Union Station Global Headquarters last week. This continues an annual tradition in which nearly 50 different flags are posted along Union Station’s parapet, each showcasing an employee of the company or country where it does business; and showing everyone that Erie is intimately connected to the global economy. Of course, the highest and largest of them all is the flag of the United States of America. This flag is taken down and replaced with a new flag each year. We’d like to send out a big THANK YOU to the Erie Fire Department for their assistance in the U.S. flag swap last week Thursday (see inset photo, bottom right).
Located along the railroad tracks at 14th Street between Peach and Sassafras Streets in Erie, Pennsylvania, the original Union Station was constructed in 1866 at an expense of $100,000. A “new” Union Station replaced the old depot around 1927. That same building still stands today, thanks in large part to Logistics Plus which purchased and renovated the building in 2003-04. Today, this beautiful building is now home to Logistics Plus, Amtrak, a brewpub, a banquet facility, a hair salon, a hookah cafe, and others (see photos of the building below from 1925, 1990, and present). Union Station was the actual center of transportation for the Erie area for decades. Even though train travel today is not what it once was, having a global logistics company headquartered at Union Station keeps Erie connected to its past by being a part of the global economy in a whole new way.
You can read the Union Station Wikipedia page for more details on the building’s history. Additionally, the Manufacturer & Business Association published an excellent Logistics Plus profile in its May 2006 Business Magazine and then again in its January 2015 Business Magazine.
