RLS Logistics adds two new members to cold chain network
RLS Logistics, through its affiliate RLS Partners, recently added two new members to its network of cold chain solutions providers: Hutt Trucking and Logistics in Holland, Mich., and Performance Cold Storage in Salt Lake City, Utah.
The companies will be known as RLS Hutt and RLS Performance.
The addition of RLS Hutt and RLS Performance drives RLS into the top 10 cold chain providers in North America, offering more than 55 million cubic feet of cold storage capacity. The RLS acquisition model is designed to preserve the culture, values, and entrepreneurial spirit of family-owned businesses, the company said. Furthermore, the network fully integrates its facility’s systems to efficiently serve customers and optimize communication.
“For RLS, it is not just about partnering with the right company; partnering with the right people is equally important,” said Russell Leo, chief executive officer at RLS Logistics. “With these strategic acquisitions, achieving our vision of becoming the leading family-owned cold storage provider in the U.S. is within reach.”
RLS Hutt, a 3PL warehouse specializing in cold storage and asset-based trucking, brings more than 35 years of cold chain experience and a team of industry experts. A leading temperature-controlled warehouse in Hudsonville, just east of Holland, RLS Hutt offers cold storage warehousing and transportation services, specializing in frozen and deep-frozen temperatures for cold chain solutions. RLS Hutt brings a fleet of trucks with technology that provides transparency into the customer’s supply chain for tight temperature control and 24/7 location tracking. The facility’s location and team will offer a foothold into the Great Lakes region for the RLS network of family owned temperature controlled warehouse providers, RLS added.
“My father and I started Hutt 36 years ago, and we are humbly proud of the opportunities and the people we have worked with over the years,” said Jim Hutt, founder of Hutt Trucking. “We believe that RLS is the best partner to help us carry forward what we put in place and offer expanded opportunities for the company and team members.”
As part of the Hutt family’s succession plan, RLS Partners brings Ken Whah onboard as the Great Lakes partnering regional operator and RLS Hutt’s president. Whah brings more than 25 years of successful executive experience in supply chain, sales, marketing, engineering, and business leadership. Most recently, he was president and CEO of Hanson Logistics, one of the nation’s largest family-owned cold storage and distribution companies in the Midwest.
“I am excited to join the RLS team in their quest to develop a first-class national platform, and even more excited and humbled to serve the RLS Hutt team members and the communities we work and live in,” Whah said.
In addition to the Great Lake region, RLS’s national network will expand into the Front Range region with the acquisition of Performance Cold Storage, now known as RLS Performance. Its 130,000-square-foot Salt Lake City operation provides cold chain solutions with multiple temperature cold storage warehousing, valued added case picking, and transportation services.
Furthermore, frozen and refrigerated customers can easily access the West Coast, RLS said. The strategic location of Utah offers inventory customers the opportunity to reach the 11 Western U.S. states within two days’ transit.
“Customers can expect a personalized, out-of-the-box, cold chain solution when they partner with RLS Performance,” said David Charles, regional partner for RLS Performance. “We are also able to scale with our customers’ peaks and growth plans making for optimal long-term alliances.”
