Steel Wires in a Warehouse, Port of Halifax

Source: Dr. Jean-Paul Rodrigue, 2008 Steel is a commodity that is used for a wide variety of purposes. In the above photo, rolls of steel wire are waiting in a general cargo warehouse (breakbulk) in the port of Halifax, Nova Scotia (Canada). They were manufactured by the Brazilian conglomerate Belgo

The Velocity of Freight

The velocity of freight is more than merely the speed at which it moves along modes; the shipment speed (or modal speed). It also includes the transshipment speed, which concerns the effectiveness of intermodal operations. It leans on synchronization between modes and terminals. Many freight transportation modes, particularly maritime and

Key Information Technology Drivers in Freight Distribution

There are five main areas of application of information technologies in freight distribution: Freight visibility. Ability to track the status and location of shipments. Asset management. Ability to manage transportation assets such as vehicles and containers. Efficiency. Ability to improve the quality of freight information being exchanged as well as

Benefits of Improved Freight Transportation on Value Chains

Like the socioeconomic benefits of transportation, the benefits of better freight transport systems over value chains are direct, indirect, and induced. Direct. Benefits to the operators of transportation systems that are experiencing cost reductions, reduced transit times, and increased reliability. Indirect. Benefits to the supply chains serviced by the operators, with

The Functional and Geographical Integration of Value Chains

Source: adapted from Rodrigue, J-P (2006) “Transportation and the Geographical and Functional Integration of Global Production Networks”, Growth and Change. Vol. 37, No. 4, pp. 510-525. Functional integration aims at linking more efficiently elements of the supply chain, namely to ensure that suppliers closely meet the requirements of customers in

Global Production Networks

In a context of intense global competition and diminishing profit margins, logistics offer additional opportunities to improve the efficiency of production through distribution strategies. In this context, global production networks (GPNs) account for an emerging and active branch of investigation of the various paradigms of globalization. While the term globalization

Level of Embeddedness of Value Chains

Source: adapted from W. Delfmann (2007) “The Changing Role of Gateways in the Context of Global Value Chain Dynamics”, Canada’s Gateway and Corridors Initiative Conference, Vancouver, British Columbia. There are different levels of embeddedness of production and distribution systems, ranging from pure standardization where markets are serviced based on assumptions

Value Chains and Freight Transport Systems

There is a direct relationship between the nature of value chains and the freight transportation systems supporting them, which can be associated with the three main stages of a value chain: Raw materials. Most raw materials are going through three major transformations. First is extraction, which is the process of