March 15 2018 | #BESTPRACTICE
Rail freight transport is especially interesting because of limited road capacity
Track most efficient modality
In the past, our products were supplied a lot from factories in Italy and Germany, but in recent years we have seen a shift from production locations to Eastern European countries, such as Poland, Hungary and Romania. During the period when the majority of the supply still took place from Italy, approximately 70% of all devices were delivered by rail and only 30% by truck. The track was and is the most efficient modality for our supply current on this route.
Chance of damage is nil
Most production locations, like our DC in Alphen on the Rhine, have their own rail connection, so there is no need to transfer via terminals. This saves the necessary handling costs and kilometers by road in connection with pre- and post transport. The risk of damage is also nil because there are hardly any vibrations on the track and the number of handles is limited. In addition, we use conventional sliding wall wagons that can transport no less than 165 m3. This is more than twice as much as a 45ft container / trailer.
Shift production to Eastern Europe
The shift in production to Eastern Europe caused a shift from rail to road. On the one hand because of the low transport prices in road transport, on the other hand because of the more limited possibilities by rail from Poland, Hungary and Romania. Compared to Italy, reliability and frequency were below par. An additional factor is that there is an increasing need from commerce for fast delivery and flexibility, partly due to the rise of internet sales. Customers expect online purchases to be delivered directly from stock. An unreliable and low-frequency supply of the products implies a higher safety stock and therefore also higher capital costs. This has meant that the proportions are now the other way around: 70% by road and 30% by rail. Fortunately, we are currently seeing another change. Roads close due to the increasing congestion. In addition, there is a risk of a shortage of truck drivers in 2020. This does not benefit the reliability and price of road transport and we want to anticipate that.
Research into new train terminal in Alphen on the Rhine
As far as we are concerned, we certainly see opportunities for rail transport and we like to use them where possible. An important condition is that the frequency in rail transport from Eastern European countries improves and that sufficient capacity remains available on the Gouda-Alphen on the Rhine route. After all, the NS and ProRail intend to run more passenger trains on this route, which consists of only a single track. Not only Electrolux, but also other shippers in the region see the value of rail transport. That is why research is currently being conducted into the realization of a new train terminal on the industrial site in Alphen on the Rhine. Whether that has a chance of success will partly depend on the available capacity on the track to and from Gouda. And that is what ProRail is in charge of. ”
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