OHL, a global 3PL company, announced that it received notice from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) that its contract logistics warehouses were accepted into the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) program and are now officially certified and part of the C-TPAT partnership.

C-TPAT is a voluntary government-business initiative that builds cooperative relationships that strengthen and improve overall international supply chain and U.S. border security. C-TPAT is widely recognized as one of the most effective means of providing the highest level of cargo security through close cooperation with international supply chain businesses.

Through this initiative, CBP asks that businesses ensure the integrity of their security practices and communicate and verify the security guidelines of their business partners within the supply chain.

"We consider C-TPAT a critical component for providing security throughout the supply chain," said Scott Pearigen , Breville Director of Supply Chain.  "We are pleased that OHL made the investment to obtain the certification for so much of its warehousing network."

Some of the chief benefits touted about C-TPAT certification by CBP, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and certified supply chain partners include playing an active role in the war against terrorism, a reduced number of CBP inspections and priority processing, reduced border delays and improved supply chain compliance and security.

"When deciding upon whether to become C-TPAT certified we immediately recognized what the value would be," says Randy Tucker , OHL President of Contract Logistics.  "We knew it would improve our aptitude in three very important areas - customer satisfaction, process improvement and security.  "We are constantly looking for new ways to improve our services for our customers and through this voluntary certification, our customers can be confident that we meet the grade when it comes to compliance and security."

OHL operates more than 130 value-added distribution centers, offers comprehensive transportation management services, employs nearly 7,000, and has offices worldwide. OHL works with direct-to-consumer fulfillment, serves a wide range of business sectors from specialty retail to manufacturing, and specializes in the apparel, electronics, printing, food and beverage and consumer packaged goods industries.