Sustainability is closely linked to profit in today’s public refrigerated warehousing (PRW) industry. After labor costs, energy is the second largest expense for PRW’s, according the 2012 International Association of Refrigerated Warehouses (IARW) Productivity and Benchmarking Report.

IARW and the World Food Logistics Organization (WFLO) will explore the dynamic relationship between sustainability and the bottom line at the 122nd IARW-WFLO Convention & Expo, May 5-8, 2013, in Hollywood, Florida, USA, with the theme “Profitable Sustainability.” The annual event is the world’s largest public refrigerated warehousing and logistics event in the world and regularly attracts 700 attendees from around the world.

Profitable Sustainability has been a year-long theme for IARW and WFLO and the focus will continue at the convention with a keynote address, “Finding the Gold in Green,” to be delivered by Andrew Winston, author of the book Green to Gold and Green Recovery.

Winston will talk about what works – and what doesn’t – when it comes to sustainability. He’ll also talk about how companies used environmental-thinking to survive the economic downturn, thrive when things get better, and dominate for years to come.

The event will also feature educational, breakout sessions, many of which will further explore profitable sustainability, including:

• Energy 101: A Primer for Executives led by Marcus Wilcox of Cascade Energy
• Leveraging Energy Efficiency to Build a Sustainable Brand, led by Chris Covell and Danielle Marquis of SmartWatt Energy and Bernie Thomas of Nor-Am Cold Storage
• Improve Warehouse Productivity and Sustainability through Lift Truck Technology led by Steve Raymond of Raymond Handling and Mike Bevers of Darigold
• Getting Customers to Adopt WMS Technology led by Wes Jayne of Halls Warehouse Corp.

This event will provide warehouse operators with the tools and knowledge to implement profitable sustainability at their own facilities,” said Corey Rosenbusch, President of IARW and WFLO. “Warehouse operators can implement changes that positively affect not only the environment, but the bottom line and the future of warehouse companies.”

The event also features a 100-booth expo dedicated to the PRW industry. The expo is already 85 percent sold.

To register or learn more, visit www.iarw.org/convention.

# # #

Media Contact: Tori Miller Liu, +1 703 373 4300, tliu@gcca.org
Event Contact: James Rogers, +1 703 373 400, jrogers@gcca.org

The International Association of Refrigerated Warehouses (IARW) promotes excellence in the global temperature-controlled warehouse and logistics industry. For more information, visit www.iarw.org.

The World Food Logistics Organization (WFLO) is a foundation, which is the primary source for education, technical information, research, and development in the global cold chain industry. For more information, visit www.wflo.org.

Members of IARW and WFLO can be identified by the use of IARW logo in their company promotions. IARW and WFLO are Core Partners of the Global Cold Chain Alliance, which represents all major industries engaged in temperature-controlled logistics.