7.10 Types of Rail Terminals

1.Bulk linked with extractive industries such as agriculture, mining,wood products, ect. generally designed to be commodity specific. 2.Roll on/Roll off Used to transport vehicles require a large amount of parking space to store vehicles 3.Breakbulk cargoes can be bagged, in drums, rolls or crates. Containerization has reduced the need for breakbulk terminals 4.Intermodal loading and unloading unitized freight from railcars 5.Shunting assembly, sorting, and “breaking” of freight trains

Types of Rail Terminals

(#fig:Figure 7.7)Types of Rail Terminals

##The Global Supply Chain {#SupplyChain-Railportglobal}

Global freight supply chains are complex systems comprised of steamship lines, truckers, railroads, ports and a whole menagerie of other businesses and practices.

Railroads and Rail-ports function as an essential platforms within global supply chains and production networks.

These supply chains are ever evolving to keep up with changes in trade patterns, updated supply chain management and even new technologies.

##The Role of Rail in the Supply Chain {#SupplyChain-Railportsupplychain} 1. Railroads are considered the middleman of the supply chain. They move about 40% of long-distance U.S. freight.

  1. They are an important conduit for freight between port and last-mile truck service. As such, freight has three transportation options upon arrival at a sea port:

Off-dock: involves the movement of a container between the terminal and a railroad facility via truck over a distance Near-dock: involves the movement of a container between the terminal adjacent but offsite railroad facility On-dock: involves the direct loading of the container onto a train within the same terminal as the original vessel

The Role of Rail in the Supply Chain

(#fig:Figure 7.8)The Role of Rail in the Supply Chain

  1. Rail intermodal is the transportation method of moving freight across the globe by both railroad and truck.

  2. As such, Intermodal provides both a competitively priced, and environmentally friendly alternative to excessive reliance on highways to transport freight.

  3. Intermodal is focused on the 53’ capacity freight market through the use of containers that move on the rail for the long haul segment of a shipment.There are two types of domestic intermodal shipping in container-on-flatcar (COFC) and trailer-on-flatcar.

Role of Rail

(#fig:Figure 7.9)Role of Rail

6.Per the Association of American Railroads: Intermodal accounts for 25% of the revenue for major U.S. railroads- more than any other traffic category Half of the intermodal traffic is due to imports and exports

7.Aside from intermodal, railroads move commodities such as crude oil, ethanol and coal to help meet energy needs. It also moves essential chemicals such as fertilizers, plastic resins, caustic soda, and much more