The curb as a contested space in city logistics

Through bad design and vehicle use the usage of the curb for deliveries can be highly disruptive. This photo is illustrative of the problem. https://transportgeography.org/?page_id=10828  

Continue reading

New page added (Forms of Transport Automation)

Tried to articulate the possible levels of transport automation for both vehicles and terminal facilities such as ports and distribution centers. While the different levels of vehicle automation is well known, I have so far seen no attempt to build a corresponding categorization for terminals and distribution centers. This is

Continue reading

Forms of Transport Automation

Source: Vehicle automation adapted from Eno Center for Transportation. Transport automation considers the range of technologies and control systems that can be implemented for transportation modes such as automobiles and trucks, but also at terminals such as ports, airports, and distribution centers. While automobile automation has received a lot of attention,

Port Automation: A Paradox for the Shipping Industry

Port Technology International has published a short piece where I resume my take on the wider context of port automation. Although automation is a factor of port efficiency improvements it may on the long run be a driver of decline in the demand for shipping.

Continue reading

The Core Principles of Digital Ledgers

A digital ledger (or blockchain) builds a digital trust platform, implying the near impossibility of tampering with the information once it has been inputted and the capacity for all involved actors to verify and trace each step. Each time there is a new transaction, a new block is created and

The Freight Landscape of City Logistics (seminar)

Will be delivering a seminar this week (May 17) at the MIT Center for Transportation & Logistics on the topic of city logistics. http://ctl.mit.edu/events/thu-05172018-1200/freight-landscape-city-logistics

Continue reading

Expected Benefits of Blockchains on Supply Chains

The potential application of blockchain technology to supply chains can be associated with a series of expected benefits: Velocity of supply chains. This is particularly the outcome of faster transactions, such as payments, which are a common cause of delays. There is less latency in the system, benefiting the cash

The Supply Chain and its Cycles

A simplistic representation of a supply chain involves a sequence of five stages, from suppliers to the final customer. Each of these stages has its own cycle, which is a sequence of operations and transactions taking place between two stages. The frequency of the cycles varies, which is reflected in

Transportation Network Efficiency and Resilience

A transportation network connecting five locations can be developed and structured differently if efficiency or resilience is the goal. On an efficient network, the priority is to develop capacity, which commonly leads to selecting main corridors that will be the focus of investments. On a resilient network, the priority is