A network overhaul—and integrated WMS/TMS systems—helped heating and
cooling equipment maker Lennox take shipping performance to the next level.

PHOTO COURTES Y OF LENNOX

LENNOX IS PERHAPS ONE OF THE BEST-KNOWN names in both residential and commercial heating and air conditioning. In business since 1895, the Texas-based company today sells a wide range of products for both home-owners and businesses. Its residential air conditioning business alone offers more than 60 heating and cooling products, all made in North America.

Not long ago, that consumer goods unit filled equipment orders from a single national finished-goods distribution center in Marshalltown, Iowa, near the company’s first factory. The DC fed product to 65 small distribution locations around the country that, in turn, served Lennox’s 6,000

dealers and contractors. At the same time, the company operated a DC in Des Moines, Iowa, about 40 miles away, that handled parts and supplies.

But over the past three years, it has changed that model significantly, abandoning the national model and developing a network of eight regional DCs.

What started Lennox down that road was a search for distribution improvements as well as a broader strategic change in the company’s operations. In a bid to reach more of the nation’s HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) contractors, Lennox had decided to open new storefronts around the country. It now operates some 130