Enjoy Seamless Connections

Of all the assets necessary to thrive in business, logistics might be the one ordinary people most likely take for granted.

On any given day, all over the world, billions of goods flow back and forth in steady streams — raw materials to manufacturers, finished goods to warehouses, bulk shipments to sellers, products delivered via air, sea, rail and road to homes and businesses. Supply chains are always at work behind the scenes, and the only time an average consumer pays much attention is when those vital connections break.

It happened bigtime in 2020. COVID-19 threw an oversized wrench into logistic systems, causing a state-by-state scramble to secure masks and ventilators; equip vaccination centers; and keep essential goods moving through ports so congested they were in danger of shutting down completely. We all saw the pictures coming out of the West Coast: ships lined up for hours waiting to unload and too few trucks standing by to carry the freight inland.

That didn’t happen in Florida. At the height of the pandemic, our ports had available berths, ample cranes and plenty of trucks ready to haul. In the midst of it all, JaxPort even managed to complete a harbor deepening project three years ahead of schedule.

While the pandemic is largely behind us, companies still need to get supplies in and products out, and no state does that better than Florida. With its extensive multimodal transportation systems and ready proximity to key markets, Florida is well-equipped to facilitate an easy flow of raw materials and finished products between manufacturers and consumers.
The proof is in names you know. Amazon, Walmart, AutoZone, O’Reilly Auto Parts, Home Depot, Ace Hardware, Chewy.com, Wayfair, Coca-Cola, Cheney Brothers, Sysco, UPS, FedEx, Trader Joe’s and Veho have all positioned at least one distribution center or warehouse in Florida.

Meanwhile, construction continues on the Miami-to-Orlando leg of the fast passenger rail system Brightline with completion anticipated by Christmas 2022, to be followed by an extension to Tampa.

In cyberspace, Florida’s interconnectedness remains alive and well. The Network Access Point in Miami serves as a major switching station for internet traffic coming into and out of Latin America, while other high-speed networks such as Florida Lambda Rail and LA Grid, facilitate R&D efforts. In addition, Florida has some of the fastest and most widely available wireless networks.