The UDC is the primary source for all Coast Guard uniforms.

The primary mission of the Uniform Distribution Center is to supply sea bag uniform items to all recruits. We also service the Coast Guard Academy, clothing lockers, reservists, NOAA, Public Health, and Auxiliary with standard sea bag and optional uniform items.  UDC also supplies all members of the Coast Guard based abroad.

UDC opened its doors at Cape May in 1988 as a central ordering facility for shipping and receiving of Coast Guard uniform items. Prior to that time, Cape May was a clothing locker much like others currently in the Coast Guard. As the need for uniform items continued to grow, Cape May's facility quickly became too small for such a large operation. In 1997, the UDC moved the majority of its operations to Woodbine, 23 miles north of Cape May in South central New Jersey.

The UDC in Woodbine currently leases its warehouse spaces along with office spaces. All together, UDC Woodbine utilizes approximately 41,000 square feet.  Meanwhile, UDC Cape May uses approximately two-thirds of the Dempsey Hall building, dedicated solely for new recruits uniform issue.  Although the UDC is physically located in both Woodbine and Cape May, it is considered one command.

The UDC employs approximately 28 members, including two Coast Guard officers:  UDC Manager (Lieutenant Commander), one Chief Warrant Officer and 26 civilian employees ranging from WG-5 to GS-11. Woodbine, being the larger facility, has 20 members while Cape May has 6 members. The UDC is more labor intensive than most would believe, it has six personnel that are responsible for boxing up and sending out orders to customers Coast Guard wide. There are three Customer Service Representatives taking all telephone orders for all active duty, reservists, and auxiliary members. Customer call volume can spike to over 650 calls on any given day, this number does not include fax orders or online orders that are also individually verified by these same three reps.

During an average month, UDC processes approximately 6,500 orders with an average monthly sales of over $1,200,000. 

The UDC currently stocks approximately 3,024 items.