YOKOSUKA, Japan (NNS) -- Naval Supply Systems Command (NAVSUP) Fleet Logistics Center (FLC) Yokosuka Site Hong Kong announced the establishment of a new office and operations in the U.S. Consulate Hong Kong and Macau, May 29.

Relocating to the U.S. Consulate marks a new era for the FLC Site Hong Kong location.

"The U.S. Navy has a long history in Hong Kong that dates back to the 1950s," said Site Director Lt. Cmdr. Lupei Chou. "This move enables us to streamline our processes in a number of key functional areas, including husbanding contract support, diplomatic clearance processing, and community relations coordination."

Personnel at Site Hong Kong coordinate efforts with the Office of Liaison Administration and Consulate staff to support forward deployed U.S. naval forces. Chou said being on the same network and in the same physical location significantly improves communication between the organizations.

"Site Hong Kong also works closely with the defense attache office in Beijing to provide coverage for U.S. Navy ship visits to China," she said. "There are currently three Chinese ports - Shanghai, Qingdao and Zhanjiang - that are open to U.S. Navy ships visiting the country."

For future ship visits to Hong Kong, Chou said fleet freight routing will no longer be supported due to space scarcity and high rental prices in the local market. However, for high-priority material, ships can still coordinate their routing directly with Site Hong Kong if the material is within the allotted weight and dimension.

"Inbound and outbound mail support is available for regular mail but provision and ship store support is limited," said Chou. "Ships are advised to plan their store loadout utilizing Department of Defense-certified sources or Combat Logistic Force ships."

In an effort to provide better ongoing logistics support to the fleet, NAVSUP FLC Yokosuka awarded the first Multiple Award Contract (MAC) for Hong Kong in August 2016.

"The new MAC concept is working well," said Chou. "It has supported seven successful ship visits since the contract award."

The Site Hong Kong office was aligned under Naval Region Contracting Center Singapore and was once referred to as U.S. Navy Purchasing Branch Hong Kong. It was not until 2007 that it realigned under NAVSUP FLC Yokosuka.

"It's exciting to facilitate this type of transition for Site Hong Kong," said Chou. "The United States Navy has a long history in Hong Kong. We're carrying on the tradition of naval support for ship visits here in Asia."

Over the years, Site Hong Kong has provided supplies, logistics, contracting, legal, and Moral, Welfare, and Recreation support to hundreds of U.S. Navy and Military Sealift Command vessels.

According to Commanding Officer NAVSUP FLC Yokosuka Capt. Jeffery Davis, the site continues to be a key enabler in the Navy's supply chain.

"Though one of the smaller sites in our area of responsibility, Site Hong Kong plays an important role," said Davis. "It provides important logistics support to our forward deployed U.S. forces, to the U.S. strategic engagements in China, and reflects the Navy's ongoing commitment to the fleet in the Asia Pacific region."

NAVSUP FLC Yokosuka is one of eight fleet logistics centers under NAVSUP Global Logistics Support (GLS). Headquartered just 26 miles south of Tokyo, it is the western Pacific region's largest U.S. Navy logistics command, networking more than 15 sites with a mission to deliver supply and logistics solutions that enable deployed maritime warfighter readiness in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region.

NAVSUP GLS provides global logistics for a global Navy. The organization is made up of approximately 6,300 military and civilian logistics professionals operating from 105 locations worldwide, providing an extensive array of integrated global logistics and contracting services to Navy, Marine Corps, joint operational units, and allied forces across all warfare enterprises.

NAVSUP provides U.S. naval forces with quality supplies and services. With headquarters in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, and employing a diverse, worldwide workforce of more than 22,500 military and civilian personnel, NAVSUP oversees logistics programs in the areas of supply operations, conventional ordnance, contracting, resale, fuel, transportation, and security assistance. In addition, NAVSUP is responsible for quality-of-life issues for naval forces including food service, postal services, Navy Exchanges, and movement of household goods.