Purolator has expressed its confidence in northern B.C. with an expanded new headquarters in Prince George.
The national courier company, a subsidiary of Canada Post, was located on the north side of the Nechako River just east of the John Hart Bridge. It had outgrown its location, said company spokeswoman Karen White, and needed a new base of operations since their business was consistently growing.
They moved into the downtown to a large compound with spacious warehouse and shipping facilities near the corner of First Avenue and Victoria Street.
"The Prince George location is our main shipping hub for northern British Columbia," said White. "The new facility is equipped with a higher-capacity material handling system and larger warehouse space to provide an additional 35 per cent in increased express and less-than-truckload shipping capabilities in northern British Columbia. The new 4.33-acre property is more than twice the size of its previous location at 429 McAloney Crescent and includes a newly renovated 10,480 square foot space for office use and a cross-dock facility with 27 dock doors."
Financial terms of the land purchase and renovation were not disclosed, nor was the number of people working at the new Purolator base.
"The number of employees stayed relatively the same," White said. "The old facility was over capacity so this new facility provides an improved layout and gives us the opportunity to grow the Prince George and northern B.C. market. This expansion serves the current needs of northern British Columbia while preparing us for future opportunities to grow our business in Western Canada."
On a national level, the Mississauga-based company employs more than 12,500 people and processes more than 5.5 million items each week, according to Canada Post data.
Purolator's network consists of 143 operations locations, including three main hub facilities, 14 regional hubs/depots and the country's largest dedicated air express fleet.
Purolator also delivers to more than 35,000 destinations in the United States, and more than 220 countries worldwide.
