Rapid home delivery is a growing area of logistics competition in retail. Walmart has a quick delivery service, and has gotten Home Depot to participate.
One interesting fact in the article is that Home Depot and Walmart rank #3 and #1 respectively in container imports!!
By Ian Putzger, Americas Correspondent 08/10/2021
Home Depot jumps onboard as Walmart launches third-party delivery cart – The Loadstar
Posted in Logistics, Service Management, Supply Chains
Tagged innovation, last mile, Logistics, supply chains, transportation
This article outlines why intermodal is not such a good option for US distribution. Though the trucking market is ‘maxed-out’, meaning it is hard to get a trucking firm to move a container, rail is having its own congestion and shortage difficulties.
And chassis remain a problem area. Most leasing companies, who own the chassis, prefer large long-term deals with ocean carreirs rather than shorter term deals for local movements in the US. The article refers to the trucker-owned chassis pool in the Midwest, which seems to be shunned by the leasing companies, creating a shortage of chassis for containers.
Today, we can’t find any area of logistics that isn’t suffering over something. A far cry from a year or two ago.
By Ian Putzger, Americas correspondent 02/09/2021
Grim outlook for intermodal as an alternative to ‘maxed-out’ US truck market – The Loadstar
Posted in Logistics, Rail, Supply Chains, Trucking
Tagged chassis pools, delays, intermodal, Logistics, supply chains, transportation
Maersk is one of the largest, and possibly the most advanced, ocean carriers. The LA/LongBeach ports have been a problem area for air pollution and sustainabiolity for many years. There’s no rail connection directly to the ports, and even so, rail is powered by diesel.
Presently containers are trucked to outlying areas like Riverside or San Bernardino where there are many distribution centers. Ocean containers are 40-feet long. They are often ‘transloaded’ to 53-foot trailers which are the standard size in the US, for long distance travel to the destination. That transloading is done at the distribution centers. Or cargo is delivered direct to customers within the LA basin.
Electric trucks have zero emissions when measured by today’s standards. They also should require substantially less maintenance, without an internal combustion engine (ICE). Using the trucks for these short hauls will reduce pollution near the ports, and also on the LA freeways. And with a fixed route they can be kept charged easily at charging stations near the port. It’s a good thing to try out.
Maersk has made a big point of their commitment to get to zero emissions by 2050. This is one more experiment in the process.
Volvo makes the trucks in Virginia, and they are supposed to be rolling off the assembly line by now.
1 September 2021 Port Technology International Team
Maersk firm strikes deal for 16 electric trucks across Southern California – Port Technology International
Posted in Logistics, Ports, Shipping, Supply Chains, Trucking
Tagged container shipping, electric vehicles, Logistics, ocean shipping, ports, supply chains, sustainability, transportation, trucking
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