By Ben Adams, Jr.
In business, we deal with numbers — financial tallies, customer data, inventory counts, product variety and identification, order accuracy etc. — and, more often than not, positive numbers translate into successful business. A business also is known by its numbers — numbers that identify it and make it unique. Below are some of the numbers we’d like to share about Adams Cold Storage and the industry in which we work.
• 2010 — The year the company started in Auburndale.
• 5 — Our employee count in 2010
• 43 — Our employee count now (in two shifts).
• 5,000,000 — Our beginning multi-temp storage space (in cubic feet).
• 7,100,000 — Our current storage space now (in cubic feet).
• 33 — The number of countries our customers either import from or export to, in addition to the 50 United States.
• 2 — The number of Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ) areas on our premises (plus one TTB area approved by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, Department of the Treasury).
• –0 — In degrees, the freezer storage temperature we maintain with pride
• 45 — In degrees, the highest storage temperature kept here.
• 45 — The height, in feet, that the turret forklifts for the new warehouse can lift products. (The operator for each forklift rides up and down with the load.)
• 2,500 — The capacity, in pounds, that each forklift can carry to maximum height.
• 17,000,000 — In pounds, the new warehouse’s product storage capacity
• 50 — The average number of trucks that come and go here daily (40 to 60).
• 200 (plus) — The number of customers we now serve.
• 99.9% Order Fulfillment Success Rate
• 8— The number of regulatory agencies we deal with regularly (USDA, FDA, DHS, DEP, EPA, FSIS, FDACS, Polk County Fire and Rescue).
• 180,000 — The pounds worth of frozen foods a single jumbo railcar freezer can carry (versus 42,000 pounds for a typical commercial truck trailer).
• 2012 — The year we were first certified by the highly regarded BRCGS accreditation organization (ACS was the first 3PL in Florida, eighth in the nation; achieved highest AA rating for past three consecutive audit cycles).
• 0 — The number of times anyone calling us will hear a recorded message when they call in during business hours. We answer the phone with a human being — and we don’t use phone prompts!
BIO: Ben Adams, Jr. is an owner and president of Adams Cold Storage, LLC, in Auburndale. He has been directly involved in citrus production, warehousing and distribution, as well as state and community support, since 1980. His facility incorporates some 250,000 square feet of multitemperature warehousing, and is AA rated by BRCGS.