 Florida State Representative Stan Jordan of Jacksonville cut the ribbon for the Big Lift Trucks facility opening. |
MFT Distributors (Pty) Ltd Co, trading as Big Lift Trucks (BLT), has invested more than USD3 million in opening a distribution, warehousing and cross-docking logistics facility in Jacksonville.
"We expect vibrant growth in the Jacksonville market," says Ryan Mouritzen, BLT vice president. The six-acre site has a 33,000 square foot (2,970 sqm) warehouse and operations building, allocates three acres of the space for a secure yard for storage of full and empty containers and is located near the Blount Island facilities of the Jacksonville Port Authority.
"BLT is well positioned to offer value-added products and services due to the close proximity" to the recently opened Jacksonville terminals of Mitsui OSK Lines India Pvt Ltd of Mumbai, India and Hanjin Shipping Co Ltd of Seoul, South Korea, he notes. "The long-term expectations are extremely positive as many of the services that BLT offers in the warehouse and container yard are not easily found in the surrounding Jacksonville area."
The Jacksonville operation has dealership contracts for container handlers and straddle carriers from Mobicon Systems Pty Ltd of Brendale, Australia and variable reach and side reach stacker trucks from Oy Meclift Ltd of Tampere, Finland.
In Africa, parent firm Big Lift Trucks (Pty) Ltd of Durban, South Africa distributes Mobicon and Meclift equipment along with container handlers from Taylor Machine Works Inc of Louisville, Mississippi, United States and surface feeders and mobile ship loaders from Aumund Group unit B&W Mechanical Handling Ltd of Ely, England.
In Jacksonville, BLT's cross-docking equipment can unload containers from incoming trailers and immediately load the units onto outbound vehicles. As needed, the staging areas can sort, consolidate and store materials until an outbound shipment is ready to leave, and the site has 24/7 camera surveillance and high intensity lighting.
The cross-docking service can significantly decrease a user's inventory storage and streamline the flow between suppliers and manufacturers.
Florida State Representative Stan Jordan of Jacksonville cut the ribbon at a ceremony opening the BLT facility, which initially employs five and began revenue-generating operations in August.
The Jacksonville international trade seaport employs more than 7,000, supports another 43,000 jobs and has Blount Island, Talleyrand and Dames Point terminals that can handle container, automobile, bulk, break-bulk and refrigerated cargo.