Eric Howell, CEO, Port City Logistics

Port City Logistics this summer announced its plans to build a transload facility in Wilmington. The $16 million project is expected to bring warehouse storage space to help streamline trucking solutions at the port. 

The third-party logistics company committed to creating 75 jobs in Wilmington as part of receiving up to $337,000 in state and local incentives. It also has leased office space in downtown Wilmington for transportation and administrative support.

Below is a recent Q&A with Eric Howell, CEO of the Savannah-based company. 

Can you describe the project Port City Logistics is building near the Port of Wilmington and where it stands now?
“Port City’s operational focus is on getting shipping containers – TEUs – out of ports fast so that our customers receive their products in a dependable manner without time or steps wasted. One of our keys to success over the years in Savannah, Georgia, has been our close proximity to the port, which gives our trucks quicker turn times and increases our ability to manage peak volumes.

We hope to duplicate that success in Wilmington by building a 150,000-square-foot, high-velocity transload facility on Raleigh Street. The new facility will have 250 trailer parking slots and 45 dock doors on each side of the building so that we can maximize the TEU throughput of customers coming through the Wilmington container terminal, less than a mile away.

We are making great progress and are currently in the process of finalizing all of our government approvals with the city of Wilmington, New Hanover County and the state of North Carolina.

As of early November, most of our civil engineering plans have been completed, and we are in the final stages of our architectural and design plans.

We expect to have architectural renderings for publication before year-end, and we plan to begin construction in the first quarter of 2023.”

What would you say are the company’s primary services and customer types?
“We have a wonderful and very diversified customer base that we provide drayage trucking (transportation of containerized ocean freight from port to destination), warehouse distribution, inventory control and security, and outbound Over-The-Road transportation services to.

Each and every day, we handle a large volume of food and beverage products, electronics, general merchandise and retail products, and nonhazardous chemicals and resins.

The majority of our customers import their products from overseas, but we also have a strong base of domestic manufacturing customers that export their products. We distribute a lot of household brand names, and we are always looking for opportunities to help new customers.”

What made the company pick Wilmington for this expansion?
“For years, my wife and I have been visiting extended family in Wilmington, and it was on one such visit three years ago that I was able to spend time with the Wilmington Business Development and N.C. Ports teams.

Those meetings left a great impression and things continued to align from there.

Wilmington checks all of our boxes for expansion in that it:
(1) is a great place to work and live and visit – our company culture is paramount, and we have to enjoy the places where we expect our team members to spend their time;
(2) has a growing port with excellent transportation infrastructure providing access to a large population base within an eight-hour truck drive;
(3) has a thriving and fast-growing workforce from which to recruit; and 
(4) has alignment across city/county/state government entities.

It’s clear that everyone that we have met at the city of Wilmington, New Hanover County, N.C. Department of Commerce, and NC Ports want to see this project succeed because it will create meaningful jobs and enhance the local and state economy."

Will this be Port City Logistics’ first facility outside of the Port of Savannah area?
“Wilmington will actually be the second market outside of Savannah because we launched three new distribution facilities in the Greer, South Carolina, market … in 2022. 

We currently have 3 million square feet under management in Savannah and 1 million square feet in Greer.”

What trends are you seeing in the ports industry that are driving your expansion?
“Many of the major ports in the U.S. have been dealing with congestion and gridlock issues over the past couple of years. We want to be where containerized freight can flow the fastest and speed to market is celebrated.  

With the fastest turn times of any container port in the U.S., the Port of Wilmington can gain significant market share and play a key part in the supply chains of a number of beneficial cargo owners with an HQ or significant commercial presence in North Carolina.

We also believe that it is better to be great in a few areas than to be mediocre in many. As a result, it’s our desire to be the logistics provider of choice for any customer that wants to import and get their products out to the population of the United States with ease and velocity. We strongly believe that Wilmington is well-positioned to streamline delivery across the United States.  

Wayne Gretzky said, ‘Skate to where the puck is going, not to where it’s been,’ and we believe the puck is going to Wilmington and the state of North Carolina.”

Too early to say whether the company will continue to grow its footprint in Wilmington?
“Life = Growth. As such, we are always looking to grow where there is opportunity and we see a very bright opportunity in Wilmington and the state of North Carolina.

We are working hard to make this first distribution facility in Wilmington a success, and we hope it will be the first of many in the area and state. We also already leased office space in downtown Wilmington to provide transportation and administrative support to our operations and sales efforts in Wilmington.

Even though we’ve been in business since 2001, we truly feel that we are just getting started as a company and that our best days are ahead.”