NEW CUMBERLAND, Pennsylvania -- Defense Distribution Susquehanna, Pa., celebrated the opening of their newest warehouse, Building 780, with a ribbon cutting ceremony at 10 a.m. on Nov. 16. Robert Montefour, site director for Defense Logistics Agency Installation Support at Defense Distribution Susquehanna opened the ceremony with a few words before introducing Army Col. Corey A. New, commander DLA Distribution Susquehanna.
The new state of the art, general purpose warehouse, constructed by Carothers Construction, Inc., provides more than 200,000 square feet of climate controlled storage for both bulk and high rack storage. There are bays to store accountable and high value items, ensuring all safety and security requirements are met. Employee quality of life was taken into consideration during the design process with locker areas, modern bathrooms, break rooms and shelter areas being high priority.
“This has been a long hard process, with an incredible effort to get everything complete,” said Montefour. “This day has been a long time coming.”
The new warehouse is a significant step in the ongoing modernization of the Defense Distribution Susquehanna installation, as the one building replaced two World War I storage facilities that are currently being demolished.
“I am even more positive that in about 50 years, there will be someone else doing the same thing that we are doing today because of the importance in our mission to our customers across the globe,” said New.
Following New’s remarks, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District deputy district engineer, Army Lt. Col. Michael S. Ruppert took the podium to say a few words on behalf of the Corps of Engineers.
“For every project, large or small, the Corps is a team of teams, and this project is a superb example of that reality. I am confident that excellent coordination between the project stakeholders including DLA Distribution, Defense Distribution Susquehanna officials, the Corps, and Carothers Construction have made this project a success,” explained Ruppert.
Finally, New, Ruppert and Montefour were joined by Ernie Blatincz, superintendent and site safety for Carothers Construction, Inc., Rene Vinette, deputy chief of special commodities, Vicki Orris, Building 780 manager and Todd Hurst, supervisory supply technician to officially cut the ribbon.