XPO Logistics will continue to support the New York City Emergency Management Department

XPO Logistics, a Greenwich, Conn.-based global provider of freight transportation and logistics services, said earlier today that it will continue managing emergency stock supplies, a key function of its multi-year partnership with the New York city Emergency Management Department (NYCEM).

XPO said it manages more than 6,000 pallets of life-sustaining supplies at two New York City facilities that are responsible for emergency distribution, adding that this program is the largest of its kind on a municipal level in the United States.

Included in these stockpiles managed by XPO for NYCEM are: water, OTC medical products, blankets, cots, baby formula, and other emergency supplies.

XPO said that in the event of an emergency, XPO rapid-response teams are prepared to distribute the supplies for up to 200 New York City-based shelters with NYCEM noting that the program is designed to respond to all possible hazards in an urban environment, making it unique worldwide.

“This program is designed to protect the people of New York when lives are at stake, said Joseph Esposito, Commissioner of the New York City Emergency Management Department, in a statement. “XPO has demonstrated the expertise necessary to serve as NYC Emergency Management’s logistics partner, and a commitment to the community that matches our own.”

XPO Logistics President Troy Cooper said “XPO is honored to collaborate with NYC Emergency Management to ensure that critical supplies reach New Yorkers quickly in the event of an emergency.

“Our teams are involved in intensive pre-planning and are trained to mobilize immediately if a call comes in,” said Cooper.

In June 2017, XPO said said its contract as logistics manager for the New York City Emergency Management (NYCEM) Logistics Shelter Support and Commodity Distribution programs was renewed.

XPO said its role in this multi-year agreement included managing two dedicated logistics facilities that are comprised of New York City’s stockpile of emergency relief supplies, as well as expediting supplies to around 100 shelters across the five boroughs of New York City in the event of severe weather or other hazardous events being imminent.  And at the point when a mobilization order is issued, XPO said it has a 24-hour window to deploy staff and transportation resources, stage shipments, begin deliveries and manage inventory replenishments. 

This new contract, NYCEM said, expands XPO's services “beyond the primary sheltering operation to include mass feeding and other logistics needs of the Emergency Operation Center task force.

XPO told LM that this program is staffed year-round by a five-person team that meets regularly with the NYCEM staff for ongoing program planning needs, as well as managing the warehouses and the rotation of supplies in the stockpile so as goods expire they are replaced. It added that during a mobilization or deployment, program staff can flex up to as many as 60 people, including XPO senior leadership, transportation management, procurement and warehouse operations specialists; field operations coordinators and support personnel.

The NYCEM emergency relief stockpile, which was established in 2007, includes more than one million liters of water and hundreds of thousands of ready-to-eat meals, as well as basic consumable supplies such as first-aid kits, baby formula, diapers, blankets, and other life-sustaining mass care supplies. NYCEM said the emergency relief stockpile “is the largest of its kind on the municipal level in the United States and a one-of-a-kind program worldwide since it is uniquely designed to respond to all hazards in an urban environment.” The program has been deployed for Hurricane Irene in 2011 and Superstorm Sandy in 2012, and mobilized for Hurricane Joaquin in 2015, NYCEM said.

The stockpile is designed to support the City’s Commodity Distribution Point Program, which distributes food and water in communities when there is a disruption of the food infrastructure, NYCEM said.

“The other logistical needs include the City’s response to other emergencies, for example water distribution in the event of a water contamination or disruption issue,” NYCEM said. “We are prepared to use the stockpile whenever the need presents itself for the supplies stored, and for engaging XPO to provide transportation management and field operations support capabilities also covered in the contract.”