Unisource Worldwide, Inc., one of the largest privately held companies in North America and a global provider of customer solutions – including engineered design capabilities, eBusiness technologies, logistics expertise, paper brokerage services, and environmentally-responsible options – announces the opening of a new 118,000 sq. ft. full-service facility in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.  The company also markets a full line of commercial printing and business imaging papers, wide-format equipment and media, packaging materials and systems, and facility supplies and equipment.

“This new warehouse and office facility positions Unisource Canada to better service our customers’ needs in the Alberta market with access to the best products from leading manufacturers,” said Dan Barbagallo, President of Unisource Canada.

Located at 11704 – 186 Street NW, Edmonton, AB, T5S 0C4, this new facility is an example of Unisource Worldwide’s continued investment in its businesses, particularly the growth foreseen for the Edmonton and northern Alberta marketplace.   

“At a time when others in our industry seem to be reconsidering their commitment to the demanding Alberta market, we remain bullish on the future of all our core business units which include paper, packaging, facility supplies and logistics,” Barbagallo said.  He said Unisource plans to gradually increase product offerings and inventory levels at the new warehouse more than five-fold.

The new Edmonton facility will replace a smaller 25,000 sq. ft. building that for the past 10 years received most of its inventory from Unisource’s 250,000 sq. ft. warehouse based in Calgary.  Suppliers will now work with Unisource to ship inventory directly to the Edmonton facility – featuring a state-of-the-art warehouse management system (WMS), 22 receiving/shipping doors, and an environmentally-friendly motion-sensitive lighting system.

Unisource “Big Red” Trucks to Provide Dedicated Service
In addition to the new warehouse, Unisource is investing in its truck fleet, featuring all-new tractor- trailer units.  Company drivers will deliver products to customers in the Edmonton and northern Alberta area, including regular service to the growing Fort McMurray region, about 280 miles (450 kilometers) northeast of Edmonton.  Unisource is well known in the industry for its “Big Red” fleet of more than 500 delivery vehicles.

“Having our own fleet of trucks in this region provides Unisource with an even greater ability to provide dedicated and reliable transportation, increase service levels, and control costs.  This is also an opportunity for our customers to take advantage of our world-class logistics network,” said Jeff Rudy, President of Supply Chain for Unisource Worldwide.  Like the warehouse, the fleet will feature state-of-the-art technology including GPS monitoring, RoadNET routing, and real-time delivery data.  “We want to ensure Edmonton customers experience the same quality and service level Unisource is known for throughout North America,” Rudy said.

The new facility is scheduled to open April 30, 2012, with plans to build inventory levels over the next six to eight weeks, culminating in a fully functioning warehouse by June.  Unisource Canada will also add sales offices to the new facility by mid-summer.