Source: Adapted from MWPVL International. Note: As of 2023.
The growth of e-commerce has resulted in the setting of a hierarchy of distribution capabilities where the inbound cross-docking distribution center (IDX) is usually the point of entry. These facilities receive and consolidate orders from suppliers. Since a large share of the suppliers are foreign, IDXs mainly aim to transload import containers into truckloads (or less than truckloads) that are delivered to a network of e-fulfillment centers. They are also, to an extent, the entry point for domestic procurement. While retailers have used inbound cross-docking distribution centers extensively in the past, Amazon has replicated this model since the mid-2010s. As of 2023, 36 IDX were operational with two orientations:
- Port-centric. IDX located in the vicinity of a major container port facility. Since a substantial share of retail goods sold in the United States are imported, it is unsurprising that Amazon has allocated more than 61% of its IDX footprint near a container port. On the West Coast, this footprint is distributed between three major gateways; LA/LB, Oakland, and SeaTac. On the East Coast, the focus is on the eastern seaboard, with the ports of NY/NJ and Norfolk in prominence.
- Inland-centric. IDX located in the vicinity of a major inland intermodal facility, which represents 39% of the footprint. Many of these facilities are related to long-distance rail corridors linked with West Coast ports, such as Chicago, Memphis, Phoenix, and Dallas.
The weighted median center of all the IDX indicates a Pacific orientation in their distribution, underlining a greater focus on transpacific shipping lanes for e-commerce procurement.