Agilent Technologies Inc. (NYSE: A) today opened a new logistics hub in Shanghai, designed to enable faster delivery of parts, supplies, and consumables to laboratories in China.

The 20,000 square-foot warehouse in Shanghai is the first of five forward stocking locations being established to improve delivery to customers throughout the country. The warehouse will store a wide range of consumables and service parts to support rapidly growing customer needs.

"With our rapid business growth in China, we needed more flexible and responsive logistics. This new center in Shanghai will enable record on-time delivery of service parts and consumables to our customers, and is a model for our future growth," said Kristin Giffin, vice president, Operations, Quality and Support, Agilent CrossLab Group.

"The facility leverages Agilent's global operations model, and has been set up with best-in-class systems for delivery performance and rapid response," said Chow Woai Sheng, vice president and general manager, Agilent Global Supply Chain. "Ultimately, this warehouse accelerates Agilent's integration of supply chain logistics with our e-commerce systems to deliver even better customer experience."

Agilent is proactively taking steps to ensure continuous service to its customers, with regional warehouses around the world adding capabilities and scale to create a more flexible and robust distribution network.

"This is just the latest example of how Agilent is working to ensure that its global supply chain is optimized to support rapid order fulfillment," said Henrik Ancher-Jensen, senior vice president, Agilent, and president, Order Fulfillment and Supply Chain. "Our continual efforts to improve the customer experience speak to Agilent's ability to be a trusted partner, and helping customers to achieve their goals."