A new service line that Port of Wilmington officials said could impact the textiles and legacy apparel industry across the Southeastern U.S. will call the port in late-November.

Crowley Maritime Corp. will offer weekly, fixed-day, full and less-than-container-load shipping and logistics services between the Port of Wilmington, Guatemala and Honduras, effective with the northbound sailings Nov. 21 and Nov. 22, Crowley officials said in a news release Thursday.

“We are thrilled to welcome Crowley to N.C. Ports. They are an industry leader in the U.S. and international transportation with 125 years of experience. They will be a great addition to the Port of Wilmington and serving businesses in the Carolinas,” N.C. Ports executive director Paul Cozza said in a news release Friday.

The new service makes the Port of Wilmington the northernmost Atlantic Coast destination for cargo entering the United States from Central America, according to port officials. The Northern Zone service expands the Ports’ impacts on the textiles and legacy apparel industry.

“We have served the cargo transportation needs of our customers shipping to and from Central America for more than 50 years,” Steve Collar, Crowley's senior vice president and general manager for international services, said in a release. “We continue to listen to their needs, then amend or expand our offerings appropriately.”

In addition to ocean transportation using Crowley’s 40-foot refrigerated and dry containers and specialized 45-foot by 102-inch dry containers, this new entry point also benefits from the company’s third-party logistics services including shipment coordination, freight forwarding, import and export documentation, last-mile delivery, cargo insurance and customs brokerage services for cargo of all types and sizes, Crowley officials said.

“Adding this new port of entry as an option for our customers is part of our overall strategy to offer customizable and complete supply chain solutions,” said Frank Larkin, Crowley's senior vice president and general manager of logistics services, in the release.

Officials with Crowley pointed to the Wilmington port's strategic location on the East Coast within 700 miles of more than 70 percent of the nation's industrial base. They also said the recent and ongoing improvements to regional and national highway networks in the area provide upgraded access to interstates 95 and 40, in addition to the daily train service at the terminal.

In July, the Queen City Express -- an intermodal rail service running between the Port of Wilmington and Charlotte -- was activated, connecting the port to such a service for the first time in 30 years.

N.C. Ports has had an active year since May with the additions of the Northern Zone service, two trans-Pacific services and a Central America to Europe pendulum service. N.C. Ports has further opened itself to the global market with a total of seven new carriers, ports officials said.

“The addition of Crowley to North Carolina Ports opens new avenues to the customers of the Carolinas and surrounding regions. Crowley is well recognized among the leaders in the industry and we look forward to continuing to serve the customers in North Carolina in new and innovative ways with this service,” N.C. Ports CCO Greg Fennell said in the release.