• SHARPE AD, Calif.

Nearly 375 associates who keep the Army & Air Force Exchange Service’s (AAFES) “tastes of home” rolling through the West Coast Distribution Center (WCDC) now have access to round-the-clock shopping thanks to a new, unattended retail unit (URU).

The Exchange’s WCDC opened in July 2001 here at the Army Depot located in Lathrop, Calif., 60 miles east of San Francisco and 60 miles southeast of Travis AFB, whose management oversees the new URU.

The DC — the youngest of all the CONUS centers — covers 1.1 million square feet and serves more than 750 stores across the Western and Pacific Regions.

EXPANDED HOURS

Distribution Center Manager Mike Martino and Services Business Manager Stevie Ledermann cut the ribbon on the DC’s new URU, which offers sandwiches, snacks, hot and cold beverages, over-the-counter (OTC) medicine and many other items.

“The big upside is the expanded hours, especially for our night shift associates,” Martino said. “The previous Express store closed at 1 p.m., so our swing shift and night shift associates only had the option of vending machines.

“This URU takes care of other departments as well, whether they’re working overtime, weekends or holidays.”

SMALL FOOTPRINT

The URU’s small footprint allowed for the formation of a new recreation/break room in the same space, adding a pool table, ping pong table, foosball, cornhole and golf putting mat.

The URU is available whenever the distribution center is operating, with normal hours Sunday at 9:30 p.m. through Saturday at 12:30 a.m.

Source: AAFES
Edited by Larry Lapka