20


Issue 6 2017 - FBJNA


transportation advantages By Karen E. Thuermer


Midwest offers


conversion services. KC SmartPort promotes these


The Midwest is flush with excellent inland ports, transportation networks and distribution centers. Take


the


Kansas City region where today companies are locating a host of distribution centers (DCs) to take advantage of geographic access to multiple markets. Many are involved in e-commerce activities.


selected Edgerton as an ideal location for the center of our North American distribution operations,” says Ron Dill, director of


Operations and Logistics,


Horizon Global. The new facility will be the main hub for the company’s Horizon Global Americas Division. It consolidates


“Our company conducted a freight management and distribution study and, ultimately, selected Edgerton as an ideal location for the center


of our North American distribution operations.”


-- Ron Dill, Horizon Global CVS is building a $110 million,


762,000-sq. ſt. distribution center on 71-acres at Kansas City, MO’s SkyPort Industrial Park to create a hybrid e-commerce service model that will support the service and fulfillment needs of more than 370 CVS stores throughout the Midwest. The DC will open early next year. “It will enable our Indianapolis


and Dallas facilities to take on more capacity and reduce delivery distances in the Midwest,” notes Jim Della Valle, CVS Health senior director for supply chain transformation and outbound transportation leader. E-commerce


powerhouse


Amazon is building its third DC in the Greater KC region – an 822,000 sq. ſt. facility in Logistics Park Kansas City (LPKC), a 1,700-acre


master-planned


distribution and warehouse development anchored by BNSF Railway’s newest intermodal facility in Edgerton, KS.


Also in


LPKC is Kubota Tractor with its 765,000 sq.-ſt. North American Distribution Center. Horizon Global, a manufacturer of branded towing and trailering


distribution into a more centrally located and larger facility while simultaneously


upgrading


distribution operations through automation and technology. BNSF


is a big factor in


companies choosing LPKC. The intermodal center operates as an inland port for freight moving to and from Los Angeles, Dallas, Kansas City, and Chicago. BNSF officials


reveal that import-


export rates there are becoming competitive with Chicago. Dallas, which can be viewed as competition, is primarily an export market. Meanwhile, the Kansas City


region is promoting SubTroplis, a 55,000,000-sq.-ft., manmade limestone cave in the bluffs above the Missouri River. Offering consistent climate and low humidity conditions, SubTroplis is billed to be the world’s largest underground storage facility. Paris Brothers, a specialty foods packager, stores and distributes food items, including coffee, in SubTroplis. Steve Wolfe, Director of Warehouse Operations, cites its protective environment as a reason. Likewise, the US Postal


“We are exporting more on flights than ever before.”


– Kenny McDonald, Regional Columbus Partnership


equipment, announced in late July that it is nearing completion on a new 512,000-sq.-ſt. DC also at LPKC. “Our company conducted


a freight management and distribution study and, ultimately,


Service keeps hundreds of


millions of postage stamps in its underground distribution hub at SubTropolis. Other tenants include the National Archives, and Ground Effects, which provides a variety of auto


and other projects in the 18 county, bi-state region. “The Kansas City region continues to stand out as an ideal location for centralizing distribution in the U.S. and North America,” says Chris Gutierrez, KC SmartPort president.


Waterway Partnerships


The U.S. Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corp. (SLSDC) and Canadian St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corp.(SLSMC) are jointly responsible for attracting increased traffic throughout the Great Lakes – St. Lawrence Seaway (GLSLS) System. They are promoted under the HwyH2O brand. “US


and Canadian trade,


economic development, and marketing specialists work seamlessly and proactively together to help Great Lakes ports work in synergy, each cumulatively identifying trade and market opportunities with carriers and shippers,” says HwyH2O executives. “Accordingly, the SLSDC and SLSMC have successfully developed a more robust international market presence the past ten years than ever before via the HwyH2O brand, particularly given our presence at multiple international trade conferences and exhibitions, facilitated sales meetings and the


recently revamped and


modernized HwyH2O website. This is evidenced by the growing number of international vessels entering the GLSLS year aſter year.” The


St. into Lawrence Seaway


and Great Lakes extends approximately 2,000 nautical miles


North America’s


heartland. The system consists of the five Great Lakes, the Seaway and the St. Lawrence River from the Atlantic Ocean to the Port of Montreal. According to the organization, this marine highway offers access to a market of over 150 million people and a vast network of over 40 ports with key intermodal connections. Of particular note, when a


vessel enters the GLSLS for a voyage, from the Gulf of the St. Lawrence to Lake Superior, it will cross the U.S./Canadian border on average 27 times, encountering


numerous US and Canadian Great Lakes ports throughout a bi- nationally-operated System. For example, Canadian ports include the Hamilton Port Authority, the


Oshawa Port Authority,


the Port of Algoma, the Port of Valleyfield, and the Thunder Bay Port Authority, among others. “The


Oshawa Port Authority


incorporated a $4.1 million rail spur in May of 2015, assisting in the expanded movement of steel and various other cargoes, including asphalt and special projects,” says Adam Schlicht of SLSDC. “Additionally, the Port of Thunder Bay is serviced by both Canadian National (CN) rail and Canadian Pacific (CP) rail, offering access to many markets for grain and project cargo opportunities, among others. Finally, the Port of Valleyfield is also another example of a Canadian port with intermodal opportunities, providing


its customers with


quick and easy access to the CSX intermodal terminal.” One the US side, ports include


the Port of Cleveland, Port of Green Bay, the Ports of Indiana – Burns Harbor, and many more. “Like their Canadian counterparts, U.S. Great Lakes ports are pursuing intermodal rail and distribution center opportunities in a robust way,” Schlicht adds. “For example, the Duluth Seaway Port Authority recently partnered with Lake Superior Warehousing and CN to offer multimodal cargo handling, storage, distribution and transportation logistics services in Minnesota, an initiative known as Duluth Cargo Connect. Similarly, Port


Milwaukee is currently partnering with the Metropolitan Mulltimodal Options


Ohio has a well developed inland port and distribution system. The Northwest Ohio Terminal near Wood County, Ohio is a cornerstone of CSX’s National Gateway. The terminal currently handles more than 30 trains a day and moves hundreds of thousands of containers per year. In 2015, CSX Intermodal Terminals, Inc. expanded liſt capacity by roughly 50%, adding two wide-span cranes and expanding processing tracks. It also added new receiving and departure tracks inside the terminal limits to help facilitate train movements. Columbus,


Ohio’s


///MIDWEST


Port of New Orleans and the St. Louis Regional


Freightway


entered into a memorandum of understanding to exchange market and operational information with the goal of growing trade and building upon existing and new business relationships between the two regions and critical ports. “We now have a framework


to work more closely together to generate new business activity that will help accelerate the present level of economic growth by increasing revenues to the Port of New Orleans and optimizing the St. Louis region’s freight network,” said Mary Lamie, executive director of the St. Louis Regional Freightway in a statement. The group hopes to capitalize on container-on-barge services and intermodal connectivity between the Port of New Orleans and the St. Louis region.


Cargo Terminal 5 in collaboration with public and private partners. LCK also announced it will strengthen its animal export business by creating a USDA- certified Export Inspection Facility that will include 12 rest stalls and USDA offices. A new air traffic control tower also opened last year. “We are extremely fortunate


to have our public and private sectors working collaboratively, including the City of Columbus, Franklin County and the State of Ohio along with the airport authority


and private sector


leadership,” comments David Whitaker, COO, Columbus Regional Airport Authority. “The region continues to make roadway improvements to keep traffic flowing to and from the 70 million square feet of distribution space currently under roof in the Rickenbacker Inland Port as well as the international rail and air platforms.” Warehouse and distribution


expansions have proliferated outside the airport boundaries, including the completion of a 1 million sq. ſt. Amazon fulfillment center in the Rickenbacker Global Logistics Park. Limited Brands is headquartered in Columbus and operates its global warehouse and DC there. In addition, Abercombe & Fitch and JC Penny have DCs in Columbus. “Columbus always been a


hot spot for distribution given its geographic position in US,” remarks Whittaker. “We are a one day truck drive to the greatest percentage of population in the United States. We are also 500 miles from Ontario.” While LCK has an imbalance of


exports over imports, Whittaker says LCK is being marketed to extend its catchment area to Cleveland, Indianapolis, Detroit, Lexington, Pittsburgh and Chicago. As a result, he says, carriers are taking on more exports. “We are exporting more on


LCK control tower. (Rickenbacker Inland Port photo.)


Milwaukee Association of Commerce and Wisconsin Economic Development Council to explore the possibility of reinstating its intermodal rail ramp and terminal, which has been dormant since 2012.” Inland ports are partnering


with coastal seaports to gain advantages. In February,


the Board of Commissioners of the


Rickenbacker Inland Port offers multimodal options. A key asset is cargo-dedicated Rickenbacker International Airport (LCK). Cargo imports and exports at


LCK rose 21% in the first half of 2017, bolstered by the additional of a second weekly frequency from Etihad and Trinity Logistics, the 2016 expansion of Emirates, and the June 2016 opening of Air


flights than ever before,” states Kenny McDonald of the Regional Columbus Partnership. It doesn’t hurt that Columbus a


has superb


infrastructure


network. Not only is it at the crossroads of I-71 and I-70, Columbus is home to two intermodal yards served by CSX and Norfolk Southern (NS). NS’s Heartland Corridor carries double stack containers between Virginia’s Port of Norfolk and Chicago via Rickenbacker Inland Port in Columbus.


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