Sustainable Supply Chain: Freight

Transport. Week 3.

Mark Bentley Lecturer & Module Leader.

[email protected]
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 Learning Aims.
• Understand the key characteristics of the different modes of
transportation in the context of freight operations.
• Understand the environmental impacts of different modes of
freight transport.
• Understand a range of strategies employed to reduce environmental
impact of freight transport.
• Understand a range of alternative fuel types used in freight
transport operations.
• Understand the application of information technology in freight
transport operations.
• Understand some of the critical debates in environmental issues
associated with freight transport operations.

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 What is a Freight Forwarder?
• Act as intermediary between importers and exporters.
• Advise and arrange transportation.
• Specialist knowledge in trade law and regulations,
insurance, import duties and movement of hazardous
materials and dangerous goods.
• Global FF associations: British International Freight
Association (UK), International Freight Associate (EU)
and Federation of Freight Forwarders Association India.

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 Freight Transport: the logistics of
supply chain operations.
• Logistics: moving raw material from source, to the point of
consumption (and return).
• Transport systems include road, rail, air, sea and pipeline
modes.
• Logistics operations prominent within the sustainability
debate.
• Emissions, noise, vibration and poor working conditions
(recall 3 Bottom Line).

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 Globalisation & International Trade.
• Globalisation and the offshoring of manufacturing
and production of low value goods resulting
international supply chains.
• Good for business but bad for the environment.
• Transport sector a big consumer of energy.
• Road transport being the biggest offender as road
transport will feature at some point within the
transport and distribution process.

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Mode of Transport Consideration.

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Ocean & Inland Water Transport.

• Container typify Ocean logistics.

• Specific vessels dependent on cargo.
• Significant east to freight movement.
• Heavy pollutant at sea and in port.
• Volatile shipping rates due to capacity.
• Will be linked with other modes of transport in the supply
chain (rail, road and inland waterway).
• Port operations will influence LPI.

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 Road Transport
• Flexible in nature and features at different points
within the supply chain.
• Diverse cargo types therefore high utility.
• Prominent in final stages or “last mile logistics”
• Fragmented sector and very competitive.
• Susceptible to volatile operating costs (fuel).
• Unpredictability of service due to traffic congestion.
• Governed by Driver / Work hour regulations.

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Road Accidents & Restrictions.

• Can be common place with freight vehicles.

• Size and weight of the vehicle will be serious.
• Driving and Work Hours regulations.
• Vehicle Maintenance and Inspection
compliance.
• What will this look like with autonomous
vehicles?

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 Affect on Employees
• Road transport subject to telematics (spy in the
cab).
• Speed, braking, efficient driving, driving duration,
fuel efficiency, in cab video.
• Poor working conditions & work pressures.
• Pay linked to performance in e-commerce and
home delivery logistics common.
• Labour shortage across the sector (global).

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 Rail Transport.
• Dependent mode of transport due to minimal options for
disruption.
• Path dependent on rail gauge therefore restrictive on
crossing national boundaries.
• Popular in countries with vast land mass.
• Lack of flexibility – linked to rail heads and dependent on
road transport.
• Containers, bulk loads, aggregates.
• Environmentally friendly 1 train = 50 HGV.

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 Air Transport
• Expensive in nature.
• Belly cargo from schedule flights for perishables,
medical supplies / life sciences cargo.
• Cargo plans for specific operations
UPS/DHL/Fedex, Military, humanitarian aid,
• Airport locations can be restrictive particularly
cargo handling specialism.
• High emissions for short haul but reduces over
longer distance.

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 Pipeline Transport.
• Gas / oil predominantly – high volume.
• High investment needed due to the
technological, construction and
maintenance costs.
• Nord Stream : 55 billion cubic meters of
gas Russia to Europe.
Country Oil miles Gas miles
US 56K 207K
Russia 24k 57k
Canada 14k 52k
China 17k 47k
Australia 11k 14k 13
 Top 10 Air and Sea Ports.

Top Cargo Airports* Volume Top Sea Ports# Volume

tonnage TEUs
Hong Kong. 5.0 million. Shanghai. 43.3 million.
Memphis. 4.4 million. Singapore. 36.6 million.
Shanghai. 3.9 million. Ningbo. 28.7 million.
Anchorage (US). 3.5 million. Shenzhen. 26.5 million.
Incheon. (South Korea). 3.3 million. Guangzhou. 23.1 million.
Louisville. 3.0 million. Busan (South Korea). 21.5 million.
Taiwan. 2.8 million. Qingdao. 22.0 million.
LA. 2.6 million. Hong Kong. 17.9 million.
Doha. 2.6 million. Tianjin. 18.3 million.
Tokyo. 2.6 million. Rotterdam. 14.3 million.
*Based on 2021
# Based on 2020

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Alternative Fuels: are these as green as they seem?

Can be fossil fuel

produced.

Uses food crops

and impacts food
security.

Produced from
fossil fuels.

Can be fossil
fuel produced.

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 Neurotoxicity
Are environmental factors (vehicle emissions)
contributing to rises in neurotoxicity?

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 Options to Reduce Emissions.
Return / Backhauling Optimum Routing & Scheduling.

Vehicle & Trailer Design Load Optimisation

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Options to Reduce Emissions.

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 Noise Pollution.
• 44% European population are subject to noise
pollution and 7% to unacceptable levels.
• Regulations used to address excess issues i.e.
night flight restrictions at Heathrow and Frankfurt
airports – 2 key European air freight hubs.
• Improvement in tyre and road effectiveness.
• Vibrations from ships propulsion systems can
damage marine life habitats.

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Invasive Species: freight’s unintended
passengers.
• Vessels entering global ports and waterways encounter invasive
species.
• These are then spread to other global regions.
• Can create bio-diversity issues, loss of indigenous Forna and Fauna.
• 22 invasive species identified in Beijing: Reptile, Mammal, Mollusk,
Fish, Water Plants, Insect, Reptile Algae. (IUCN Invasive Species
Data Base).
• Invasive species can also effect economic loss, China reports to lose
1.3% GDP due as a result of invasive species derived from logistics.

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Infrastructure: complexity and feasibility.

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Infrastructure: controlling congestion.

Road Charging.
Consolidation Centres.
Night Delivery Operations.

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Infrastructure: central to the One Belt One Road
initiative.
• Launched in 2013 and due to be completed 2049 to promote
international trade.
• Connects Asia with Africa and Europe.
• China have engaged 149 countries and 39 institutional orgs.
• Financed roads, ports, railway links, power stations aviation and
telecom infrastructure.
• 40 countries in debt and defaulting on payment.
• What's in the agreement?
• Is this initiative in China’s interest i.e. trade, overseas presence
and control?

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One Belt One Road Trade Routes.

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 Reducing Freight Logistics Operations.

• Retreat of globalisation: Brexit, Global

Nationalism & Protectionism.
• Offshoring to Nearshoring.
• 3D Printing: supply & demand in “real
time”.

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 Evolution of the supply chain
sustainability agenda.
• Transport Emissions have been (and still remain)
the key narrative of supply chain sustainability.
• Extension to bio-diversity, social and economic
themes.
• Sustainability will continue to be a multi-
dimensional agenda as we progress through the
21st century.
• Behaviour change will be the real breakthrough in
terms of progress.
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 References & Further Reading.
• Grant et al (2017) Sustainable Logistics and Supply Chain Management.
London. Kogan Press.
• www.worldshipping.org/top-50-ports
• www.internationalairportreview.com
• www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/1216/mapping-world-oil-gas-pipelines-
interactive
• www.shippingworld.com
• www.metabolic.nl
• www.local.gov.uk/publications/future-last-mile-deliveries-understanding-
local-perspective
• https://unctad.org/system/files/official-document/cimem7d17_en.pdf
• Google images.

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 Glossary & Terminology.
• Multimodal. • Unpredictability.
• Modality. • Freight Forwarding / Forwarder.
• Emissions. • Optimisation.
• Bio-diversity. • Backloading.
• Sustainability. • Regulations.
• Behaviour Change. • Pollution.
• Offshoring / Nearshoring. • Clean / Green Energy.
• Last Mile Logistics. • Diversity.
• Volumatic. • Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
• Protectionism.
• Nationalism.
• Infrastructure.
• One Belt One Road.
• Infrastructure.

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