FREIGHT TRANSPORT

Freight Transport

Freight Transport

Introduction

Alcan Fine Coatings operates a production mill at Dalgety Bay in the east of Scotland. The company produces fine grain alumina powders which are used as additive or bulking agents in the manufacture of high quality paper, paint and fire retardant materials. Within the UK Alcan Fine Coatings is the third largest manufacturer with all products delivered directly to customers from Dalgety Bay. The company is currently reviewing arrangements for the delivery of its products to the Benelux market which is one of its main European export markets.

The Alcan Fine Coatings should consider following factors while making choice for the alternative proposal. Mode choice is important both for freight movement. Mode choice for commuting has received substantial interest because of the growth in the share of single-occupant vehicles and the decline in share for transit, carpooling, and other modes. Although the mode shares differ substantially across countries, the trend tends to be fairly universal(Goetz, 2006, 230). To some extent, this is the result of rising incomes and people placing a higher value on saving time, but there are also substantial concerns about whether people are making those choices based on full information regarding the cost differences.

Ports

Although the physical geography of the world conveys a staggering amount of coastline, only a limited amount is effectively suitable for port operations. Port terminals handle more freightthan all other types of terminals combined. To perform their role, port infrastructures jointly have to accommodate transhipment activities both on ships and on land(Levinson, 2006, 56). They are points of convergence between land transport and maritime systems. Considering the operational characteristics of maritime transportation, the location of ports is constrained to a limited array of sites, mostly defined by geography. Most ports, especially those that are ancient, owe their initial emergence to their site, as the great majority of harbors take advantage of a natural coastline or a natural site along a river(Garrison & Levinson, 2006, 86). The suitability of port sites continually changes with technical changes in maritime shipping and coastal urbanization. Such sites have become valuable and rare resources.

Location Patterns

If one thinks about the commute in terms of the collection, line haul, and distribution phases, it becomes apparent that changes in location patterns over time have had a substantial impact on the ability of transit to serve these functions for commuters. As population decentralized, development moved away from concentration around transit stops, but transit could still serve effectively if people could get to the system and employment was concentrated around transit. Hence, park and ride became a viable option for people with a car available(Solomon, 2007, 87). The increased ownership of automobiles over time made this a possible method to use transit for many people. However, the decentralization of employment has proven to be more problematic. Although people are willing to take cars that were purchased primarily for personal use and let them sit in a parking lot while at work, they typically are not willing to purchase a car to ...