Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc., (BIVI) hosted city officials, community partners and employees at the grand opening ceremony of its new, global packaging and distribution warehouse in St. Joseph, Missouri n 27 August, including tours of the new facility.

The 261,000-square-foot warehouse, located at 5701 Providence Hill Drive, will streamline the process of packaging, material handling and distribution of biological vaccines and pharmaceuticals to more than 50 countries around the world.

Construction on the new consolidated distribution centre began in 2012 with an investment of $28.7 million and has 261,000 square feet, the size of approximately four football fields, of operating space at opening. It is designed to meet current requirements and allow for future expansion of biological manufacturing capabilities over the next 10 years with an additional 100,000 square feet available for future growth.

Installed in the facility are many energy conserving features including motion sensor lights, high efficiency chillers and boilers, variable frequency drives on motors, low water usage fixtures and solar panels installed by Kansas City Power & Light.

“Our new Packaging and Distribution Warehouse allows for future growth,” says Dr Albrecht Kissel, president and CEO of Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc. “This new facility will allow us to meet the needs of our customers we serve and prepares us for even further growth in the future.”