Category: McLane

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Velocity Freight Transport, Inc. has joined the Blockchain in Transport Alliance (BiTA), a forum for the development of blockchain standards and education for the freight industry.

As one of the first freight brokerage companies to join BiTA, Velocity will work closely with the organization to set new standards for the use of blockchain technology in the transportation space.

With this announcement, Velocity Transport joins a consortium of 250-plus companies that have joined BiTA within the last six months and have a vested interest in the development of blockchain technology.

McLane Company Inc., a Berkshire Hathaway-owned supply chain services company, recently launched Velocity Transport as a freight brokerage company dedicated to providing significant value to both shippers and carriers.

Velocity Transport entered the marketplace to offer comprehensive freight solutions and deliver an unparalleled level of service to both shippers and carriers. Velocity’s decision to join BiTA reinforces the leadership team’s dedication to providing significant value to their clients and leading the freight brokerage industry into a new era of cutting-edge technology and thinking.

“We believe blockchain provides great value in solving industry pain points, but there needs to be clarity and standards around its use and BiTA intends to provide that through education and promotion of the technology,” said Chris Burruss, president of BiTA. “Velocity adds a crucial voice to BiTA, and their perspective will help BiTA and its membership build the world’s first transportation industry-specific blockchain standards.”

By engaging the brightest minds from the most influential leaders in transportation, finance and technology, BiTA is focused on providing educational resources and open forums to those in the industry interested in leading the evolution of the trucking industry through the efficiencies offered in blockchain technology.

“By becoming a member of BiTA, Velocity is connecting with a group of like-minded companies that want to drive innovation and advocate for the adoption of blockchain applications in the freight industry,” said John Lower, vice president of Velocity Transport. “We are very excited about the great potential of blockchain technology and are proud to join the team that will set the standards for its use going forward.”

Other Berkshire Hathaway companies that have joined BITA include BNSF Railway.

© 2018 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

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McLane Company Inc., a Berkshire Hathaway-owned supply chain services company, has launched Velocity Freight Transport, Inc., a freight brokerage company dedicated to providing significant value to both shippers and carriers.

Led by industry veterans Ross Grier, John Lower, Aaron Keister, and Seth Arnoux, Velocity Transport aims to be a first-class freight brokerage company known for their principled approach and quality of service.

According to a company statement, the launch of Velocity Transport comes at a time when the supply chain industry is in need of fresh thinking and an updated business model to enable carriers and shippers to meet their deadlines, growth goals and retain their competitive edge. To help with this, Velocity Transport will offer competitive pricing, relentless service, cutting-edge technology and comprehensive freight solutions.

With its headquarters and operations management stationed in Plano, Texas, Velocity Transport plans to serve clients across the United States, and provide refrigerated, flatbed, intermodal, LTL, van and expedited freight offerings.

“With today’s constant shifts in consumption trends and transportation regulations, supply chain leaders in all industries are facing more volatility and challenges than ever before. We’re launching Velocity Transport to bring comprehensive freight solutions to the market and deliver a level of service that will raise the bar on the freight brokerage industry overall,” said John Lower, vice president of Velocity Transport.

“Our entrepreneurial spirit, commitment to excellence and collaborative approach will enable the Velocity Transport team to remain agile and flexible when delivering solutions. We look forward to providing an exceptional experience to the shippers and carriers in our rapidly evolving marketplace,” Lower added.

© 2018 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

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Berkshire Hathaway’s wholly-owned supply chain services company, McLane Company, Inc., has opened a new, $150 million, 417,338-square-foot grocery distribution center in Findlay, Ohio.

“Of our 80 grocery and foodservice distribution centers nationwide, the Findlay facility is the most technologically advanced combining teammates, state-of-the-art automation, advanced robotics and artificial intelligence,” said Tony Frankenberger, President of McLane Grocery.

The McLane Findlay distribution center will employ approximately 400-500 teammates in Ohio.

Of McLane’s 80 distribution centers nationwide, the massive Findlay facility is the most technologically advanced – utilizing teammates, robotics and artificial intelligence to deliver over 325,000 picks of items per day at peak operation.

Governor John Kasich gave remarks applauding McLane’s decision to locate in Ohio and highlighted the positive impact McLane has on the community. He touched on some of McLane’s inclusive hiring policies stating, “That is a huge, huge deal, when we’re giving everybody a chance.”

The McLane Findlay distribution center will store approximately 16,000 grocery and convenience store items representing over 700 suppliers, which will continue to increase in 2018. Robots utilize bar codes on the products to store and transfer pallets of goods, traveling up to 60 mph to fulfill orders. McLane teammates help control and program the robots and load and organize products into bins based on the products’ final destinations.

These items are then delivered to convenience stores, mass merchants, warehouse clubs and drug stores in Ohio, Michigan, Indiana and Pennsylvania.

“There is an outstanding culture providing a strong workforce place here in Findlay in Hancock County and when I say strong I mean that in the sense of commitment, respect, and teamwork,” said Julie Norris, Division President, McLane Grocery Distribution.

The McLane Findlay distribution center employed 500 construction trade representatives over the facility’s 14-month construction. The company is committed to hiring Ohioans and contributing to the Findlay and Ohio economy. Teammates are relocating to Findlay from Toledo, Lima, Indianapolis and Detroit to work at McLane. In addition, McLane has hired over 95 truck drivers, with plans to hire 75 more.

© 2017 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

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McLane Company Inc., a Berkshire Hathaway-owned supply chain services company, has announced that Kum & Go, one of the nation’s most respected convenience retailers, has reached an agreement for McLane Company to serve as its grocery wholesaler effective in the second quarter of 2018.

Established in Hampton, Iowa, in 1959, Kum & Go has grown to employ more than 5,000 associates in more than 400 stores in 11 states (Iowa, Arkansas, Colorado, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Wyoming).

“McLane’s commitment to technology and operational excellence will be critical as we work together to develop and implement solutions benefitting our customers and associates,” said Chris Jones, senior vice president of marketing at Kum & Go.

Under the multi-year agreement, McLane will begin servicing all Kum & Go stores in early spring of 2018. Kum & Go LC manages and operates more than 400 stores across 11 states.

“Kum & Go is an organization focused on bringing the best product offerings and innovation to its stores so its associates can deliver more than their customers expect. Kum & Go, like McLane, understands the value teamwork brings to the success of a company. On behalf of all the teammates of McLane Company, we are honored to be chosen to not only service Kum & Go, but to work hand-in-hand and implement solutions that bring great value to both organizations,” said Tony Frankenberger, president of McLane Grocery.

© 2017 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

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Berkshire Hathaway’s McLane Company, a leading supply chain services company providing grocery and foodservice supply chain solutions, is part of a group of leading companies across the global food supply chain that have announced a major blockchain collaboration with IBM intended to further strengthen consumer confidence in the global food system.

In addition to McLane Company, the consortium includes Dole, Driscoll’s, Golden State Foods, Kroger, McCormick and Company, Nestlé, Tyson Foods, Unilever and Walmart.

The companies are coming together with IBM to further champion blockchain as an enabling technology for the food sector. Together they will help identify and prioritize new areas where blockchain can benefit food ecosystems and inform new IBM solutions. This work will draw on multiple IBM pilots and production networks in related areas that successfully demonstrate ways in which blockchain can positively impact global food traceability.

Every year, one-in-ten people fall ill – and 400,000 die – due to contaminated food. Many of the critical issues impacting food safety such as cross-contamination, the spread of food-borne illness, unnecessary waste and the economic burden of recalls are magnified by lack of access to information and traceability. It can take weeks to identify the precise point of contamination, causing further illness, lost revenue and wasted product. For example, it took more than two months to identify the farm source of contamination in a recent incidence of salmonella in papayas.

Blockchain is ideally suited to help address these challenges because it establishes a trusted environment for all transactions.

In the case of the global food supply chain, all participants – growers, suppliers, processors, distributors, retailers, regulators and consumers – can gain permissioned access to known and trusted information regarding the origin and state of food for their transactions. This can enable food providers and other members of the ecosystem to use a blockchain network to trace contaminated product to its source in a short amount of time to ensure safe removal from store shelves and stem the spread of illnesses.

“Unlike any technology before it, blockchain is transforming the way like-minded organizations come together and enabling a new level of trust based on a single view of the truth,” said Marie Wieck, general manager, IBM Blockchain. “Our work with organizations across the food ecosystem, as well as IBM’s new platform, will further unleash the vast potential of this exciting technology, making it faster for organizations of all sizes and in all industries to move from concept to production to improve the way business gets done.”

© 2017 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

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Berkshire Hathaway’s McLane Company, a leading supply chain services company providing grocery and foodservice supply chain solutions, has renewed its service agreement with long-time customer Love’s Travel Stops.

As part of this extended agreement, McLane will continue to deliver to more than 430 Love’s stores across 41 states, as Love’s Travel Stops continues to add approximately 40-50 stores per year.

“McLane continually shows commitment to our business. McLane’s Center for Category Innovation assists our team with exceptional category management resources enabling us to grow sales year over year,” said Mark Romig, director of merchandising at Love’s Travel Stops. “McLane’s national scope allows us to achieve our growth goals while meeting the needs of our Customers in an efficient way.”

“Love’s provides a rewarding experience for its customers and we are honored they chose to continue to utilize our best-in-class resources. McLane’s procurement, technology and operations provide our customers superior service and consistency of performance as well as expanded product offerings, regardless of location. As Love’s continues to expand their network, McLane will be there to assist in reducing cost and driving efficiency at retail,” said Vito Maurici, senior VP of sales of McLane Grocery.

© 2017 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

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Berkshire Hathaway’s McLane Company, Inc., a leading supply chain services company providing grocery and foodservice supply chain solutions, has signed an expanded agreement between McLane Foodservice Inc., and BURGER KING.

Under the new agreement, McLane Foodservice, Inc., will provide support to an additional 600 BURGER KING restaurants located in Tennessee, Georgia, Florida, and Alabama.

This addition brings the total number of BURGER KING stores McLane services to 2,467 locations from eight distribution centers across the U.S.

Since 2000, BURGER KING has counted on McLane Foodservice as its primary distributor. The extended relationship ensures the restaurant chain will continue receiving McLane’s dependable service offerings and support as the business grows.

“In the highly competitive QSR industry, BURGER KING continues to up its game in terms of menu offerings and the locations served,” said President of McLane Foodservice, Inc. Tom Zatina. “We are honored the company has entrusted us with their foodservice supply chain needs over time and we look forward to further contributing to their success.”

© 2017 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

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Berkshire Hathaway’s McClane Company has inked a 25-year extension to its service agreement with long-time client Walmart.

As part of this extended agreement, McLane will continue to deliver to Walmart stores across the U.S., in addition to becoming the sole provider of candy and tobacco products to the vast majority of Walmart’s retail locations.

The contract is scheduled to renew in May 2017, and with it McLane will now become the exclusive provider of Walmart’s seasonal candy products to all locations nationwide.

“McLane’s ability to deliver temperature-sensitive products to all of our stores and manage our large volume of seasonal goods will ensure we have the best selection of high-quality products at the lowest cost for our customers,” said Vice President of Candy and Impulse Merchandising at Walmart, Joe Grady.

“McLane is proud to be a long-time partner of the world’s largest retailer. We are excited to expand our product mix with Walmart as we continue to serve all of Walmart’s U.S. locations,” said Tony Frankenberger, President of McLane Grocery.

Walmart has a long history with McLane. The company was originally acquired by Walmart in 1990, and later sold to Berkshire Hathaway in 2003.

© 2017 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

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In a major move, Kroger is moving its convenience store business to Berkshire Hathaway’s McLane Company.

McLane Company has announced a service agreement with Cincinnati, Ohio-based The Kroger Co. and its 787 c-stores located across 18 states.

Kroger has a variety of convenience stores under the banners Loaf ‘N Jug, Turkey Hill Minit Market, Tom Thumb, Kwik Shop and Quik Stop.

“We look forward to our partnership with McLane and the company’s ability to support our continued focus on the products that matter most to our customers”

“Kroger continues to raise the bar in terms of product and foodservice offerings, convenient locations and customer satisfaction. We look forward to seeing explosive growth and success as the company capitalizes on the many customer-centric offerings that set McLane apart from the competition. Whether it is the centralized control of our procurement and operations that provide our customers superior service and consistency of performance and product offerings regardless of location, to taking advantage of our best-in-class technology to assist in reducing cost and driving efficiency at retail,” said Tony Frankenberger, president of McLane Grocery.

Frankenberger added, “Like Kroger, McLane continues to set itself apart from the rest of the industry and we are honored they have chosen to take advantage of our industry-leading cold chain network, expanded fresh foods program and award-winning category management expertise. We are proud to partner with such a strong leader within our industry and look forward to building the foundation for a long lasting and mutually successful relationship.”

© 2017 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

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Berkshire Hathaway’s McLane Company, Inc., a leading supply chain services company providing grocery and foodservice supply chain solutions throughout the U.S., has been awarded services for 29 Xtra Mart c-store locations recently acquired by Binghamton, New York-based Mirabito Holdings Inc.

As part of the multi-year agreement, McLane will begin servicing the 29 Xtra Mart locations in central New York and Northeast Pennsylvania starting January 1, 2017.

With the addition of the 29 Xtra Mart locations, which will be rebranded as Mirabito c-stores, McLane now handles all of Mirabito’s c-store locations in the eastern region, bringing the total to more than 100 stores.

“Mirabito has had a long standing relationship with McLane Company and have trusted the support of the company’s senior leadership team for over 20 years,” said President and Chief Executive Officer Joe Mirabito. “Their commitment to our future is invaluable and we look forward to a long and successful relationship.”

“McLane Company has been servicing our current stores for 20 years and we are excited that McLane will be servicing our newest addition to the Mirabito Family. McLane has been a critical part of our success and growth. Their commitment to our business, professionalism, customer service, and ability to adapt and develop technology applications aligns with our future growth plans and superior customer shopping experience,” added Chief Operating Officer Rich Mirabito.

A customer of McLane since 1997, Mirabito has stated the supply chain’s strategic leadership, operating excellence, and tech solution offerings as contributors to its growing footprint in the eastern region over the years.

Specifically, through its participation in McLane’s Center for Category Innovation and inclusion of the supply chain’s foodservice solution, McLane Kitchen, Mirabito plans to roll out newly remodeled stores and introduce specialty, fresh and frozen items and equipment starting in 2017.

“Mirabito is a well-respected and a long-time customer of McLane, so it’s an honor they have chosen us to provide services for the acquired Xtra Mart business,” said Tony Frankenberger, president at McLane. “Our portfolio of services will enable Mirabito to provide a wider variety of foodservice offerings and upgraded footprint experience to its rapidly growing customer base.”

© 2016 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.