Walmart Opens New Next Generation Fulfillment Center in Joliet, Illinois; Karisa Sprague and James Bright III Share

Monday, Oct. 3rd, 2022

by Lilian Diep

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JOLIET, IL - A new facility is gracing the grounds of Joliet, Illinois, as Walmart revealed the grand opening of its 1.1-million-square-foot Next Generation fulfillment center (FC).

“Customers continue to expect faster delivery times, and we are excited to be able to meet those needs with these new high-tech facilities,” said Karisa Sprague, Senior Vice President of Fulfillment Network Operations, Walmart U.S. “The addition of the Joliet next generation FC, paired with our 31 dedicated e-commerce fulfillment centers, will allow Walmart to fulfill online orders for Walmart.com and Walmart+ customers with greater shipping speed in the Midwest region. And, with the holidays around the corner, we’re excited to provide a more seamless experience for our customers.”

Located at 3501 S. Brandon Road, the new Joliet fulfillment center will be the first of four next-gen FCs, announced earlier this year, that will feature a new patent-pending process powered by the combination of people, robotics, and machine learning. According to the release, this process will set a new precedent in fulfillment speed by streamlining a manual twelve-step process to just five steps.

Walmart revealed the grand opening of its 1.1-million-square-foot Next Generation fulfillment center in Joliet, Illinois

Once completed, the four new state-of-the-art FCs for Walmart could provide 75 percent of the U.S. population with next- or two-day shipping. The new state-of-the-art facility will also fulfill Marketplace items shipped by Walmart Fulfillment Services (WFS), Walmart’s end-to-end fulfillment service for third-party e-commerce sellers.

James Bright III, General Manager, Fulfillment Center FC3040 “As the first-of-its-kind for Walmart, our newly opened facility introduces an array of opportunities to our associates, including brand-new, tech-focused jobs. There’s never been a more exciting time to join Walmart Supply Chain,” said James Bright III, General Manager, Fulfillment Center FC3040. “I look forward to seeing the positive impact this team of associates and the Joliet facility will have on not only the Northeast Illinois community and economy but also for Walmart customers across the Midwest.”