A Distribution Center (DC) is a warehouse where companies will ship their products to store in the climate controlled facility.  From here, companies will ship their products (goods) to be redistributed to retailers, wholesalers, or directly to consumers. This process improves a company’s supply chain management, and decreases the amount that a store must keep in stock at any given time. A distribution center is a principal part, the order processing element, of the entire order fulfillment process. Distribution centers are usually thought of as being demand driven. A distribution center can also be called a warehouse, a DC, a fulfillment center, a cross-dock facility, a bulk break center, and a package handling center. The name by which the distribution center is known is commonly based on the purpose of the operation. For example a "retail distribution center" normally distributes goods to retail stores, an "order fulfillment center" commonly distributesgoods directly to consumers, and a “cross-dock facility” stores little or no product but distributes goods to other destinations.