Crowley Warehouse Wins High-Security Designation

The State Department designated Crowley Maritime Corp.’s Miami logistics warehouse as a Consolidated Receiving Point facility, allowing the company to act as a subcontractor for high-security logistics projects such as construction and renovation of U.S. embassies.

In order to be approved as a CRP, Crowley built a secure facility within the warehouse, in order with State Department specifications, and restricts the area to qualified employees with special security clearance.

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Previously Crowley often had to route such sensitive cargo to third-party CRP warehouses instead of receiving, consolidating and dispatching it from its own facility. The designation will also allow Crowley to perform complementary services for the State Department, including storage, inland movements, container loading, shipping, export docking, customs brokerage and more.

"This new service underscores Crowley's commitment and capability in taking on even the most sophisticated private military and government projects," said Jay Brickman, vice president, government services. "The addition of this secure warehouse combined with our vast experience working with the government and handling challenging assignments, will provide greater value for the State Department as they embark on U.S. Embassy projects in the future."

The secure facility is the only one of its kind in Florida. Crowley said it selected Miami for the facility because of its direct access to international sea and air transportation resources. The warehouse also serves as the disaster response center for the United States Agency for International Development.

The State Department established its current protocols for embassy construction and renovation in the 1980s when it discovered the U.S. Embassy in Moscow was bugged with listening devices. The building was destroyed and replaced with a new one, built with U.S. materials and labor.

-- Contact Joseph Bonney at jbonney@joc.com. Follow him on Twitter @josephbonney.