Intermodal transport

CO2 savings

CO2 savings, being able to load more weight and consequently charge a lower price per transported kilo is of course of interest to many of our clients. Kai Kogelman, planner at Dasko in the Netherlands, explains the advantages of this form of intermodal transport.

“In this mode of transport, trailers are placed on a train set and subsequently transported by rail to a station that is closest to the destination. In our case they travel to Germany after which they leave the train in Italy and are taken to their end destination and vice versa. We use special trailers that are suitable for rail transport.

Able to transport heavier loads

There are two main reasons why we use this form of unaccompanied transport. Firstly, it saves road kilometres, and secondly rail transport can handle more cargo than road transport. A train can transport up to 20 trailers, which means that it is a cleaner mode of transport.
Another advantage of the train is that it can cope with heavier loads. This gives a substantial reduction in costs per transported kilo."

Full process control

As is the case in road transport, intermodal transport requires strict planning, says Kai: " We make sure that the trailer is at the terminal in good time and we make sure that a truck is ready to pick it up at the final station. We continually search for the best lines whereby the train terminals are situated as closely as possible to the shipper and our clients. There are many aspects involved in achieving effective coordination." Although intermodal transport is a form of unaccompanied transport, the planning staff closely monitor the process, explains Kai: "The temperature is set at the required level and as soon as it exceeds this level, extra cooling will start automatically. In addition all trailers have a GPS tracker, so we know their location at all times."

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