Gulfstream Aerospace Corp. recently moved its European Parts Distribution Center to a facility near London’s Heathrow Airport. The center houses high-usage items commonly required by international customers and provides rapid-response support to Gulfstream’s service center less than an hour away at London Luton Airport.

“This new location is ideal for us,” said Mark Burns, president, Gulfstream Product Support. “There are more direct, non-stop flights from Heathrow than any other airport in Europe, so we can get parts and materials to customers faster than ever. In addition, the warehouse’s proximity to Gulfstream Luton enables us to supplement the parts we have there. This warehouse will also support our dedicated mobile repair unit based in Europe and technicians in Luton dispatched to assist customers in the region.”

Gulfstream has started stocking parts at the new distribution center, which is approximately 8,000 square feet/743 square meters. The center, which is located at the Heathrow Gateway business complex in west London, is expected to have more than $50 million in inventory by the end of 2015. Gulfstream’s partner in this operation is Ceva Freight (UK) Ltd., which provides the warehouse space and handles logistics services.

“Our business partner can take care of customs documentation and ground transportation at each end,” Burns said. “This arrangement will benefit our European-based fleet, which has grown dramatically since 2008.”

In the last six years, Gulfstream’s European fleet has grown from 109 aircraft to more than 200.

Gulfstream maintains a worldwide spares inventory of more than $1.4 billion, with more than $65 million in European-based inventory at Gulfstream Luton and Jet Aviation Basel in Switzerland.

The new European Parts Distribution Center replaces Gulfstream’s parts warehouse at the CORJET Europe facility at Madrid Barajas Airport. That center opened in May 2009.