Downscaling the consolidation of goods – state of the art and transferability of micro-consolidation initiatives

Consolidation schemes are a popular measure in city logistics. The most common of these consolidation schemes are Urban Consolidation Centres (UCCs). However, many innovative experiences have been performed in the cities across the globe, offering a large panel of alternative schemes. In particular, many experiences have focused on down scaling the consolidation effort by bundling the goods much closer to the reception point. This paper aims in offering a closer view into different alternatives that exist regarding the physical micro - consolidation of goods and to provide guidelines on se lecting the most appropriate solutions for a specific city area. In order to do this, we will develop a transferability methodology, based on the study of case studies across the Europe. We will build on the current transferability methodologies developed under several EU projects and adjust them for the specific case of the micro - consolidation measures. This will lead us to the definition of the most important features for the transferability of the micro - consolidation measures. Based on this, we will est ablish for each feature a list of attributes for the transferability of the micro - consolidation devices, which will be prioritized according to their importance for the transferability success

Urban freight consolidation platforms as a means of decreasing costs and enhancing performance of urban logistics chains within the framework of a market economy: Application to Brussels-Capital

Les centres de consolidation urbaine sont une mesure populaire dans la logistique urbaine visant à rationaliser les trajets liés aux livraisons en ville. Cependant, bien que les avantages environnementaux de ce type de dispositifs ont été largement abordés et documentés, un nombre important de cas d’implémentation n’ont pas parvenu à atteindre une participation suffisante et démontrer un modèle de fonctionnement viable. Les principaux obstacles liés à leur mise en œuvre relèvent des préoccupations financières et de l’acceptation de la part des acteurs de la logistique urbaine. Par conséquent, le succès de ces schémas logistiques est souvent conditionné par un fort soutien réglementaire et financier des pouvoirs publics. Récemment, de nouveaux types de modèles d'exploitation des centres de consolidation urbaine, proposant une gamme d'activités à valeur ajoutée, sont apparus, permettant une meilleure intégration de ces plateformes dans la chaîne d'approvisionnement. En outre, un grand nombre d'expériences récentes se concentrent sur la consolidation de fret à petite échelle, ce qui permet un assouplissement des besoins en ressources matérielles et humaines. L'objectif de cette thèse est d'étudier le potentiel des plates-formes de consolidation de fret urbaines de diminuer les coûts et d'améliorer les performances des chaînes logistiques urbaines. En particulier, la thèse traitera des facteurs qui influent sur la viabilité de ces schémas logistiques dans le cadre d'une économie de marché.La thèse est structurée autour de trois questions de recherche qui portent sur (1) la viabilité du modèle traditionnel du centre de consolidation urbain basé sur les activités de transbordement et de consolidation, (2) les impacts des mesures qui visent à soutenir la mise en œuvre des schémas de consolidation et le niveau d’approbation des acteurs de la logistique urbaine qui en découle, (3) l’impact des nouvelles approches dans le domaine de plates-formes de consolidation de marchandises en ville et en particulier des nouveaux modèles d’exploitation de centres de consolidation urbains et des plates-formes de micro-consolidation. En abordant ces aspects, la thèse démontre que le modèle du centre de consolidation urbain traditionnel peut présenter une alternative viable, mais que le succès de ces schémas logistiques est soumis à un grand nombre de conditions qui sont difficiles à satisfaire en pratique. La thèse identifie les mesures d'accompagnement qui peuvent à la fois accroître la participation dans le schéma de consolidation et l'acceptation des acteurs, ainsi que celles qui rencontrent une réponse plus mitigée de la part des acteurs. Enfin, la thèse identifie les avantages potentiels des nouveaux modèles d’exploitation de centres de consolidation ainsi que les avantages de la consolidation à petite échelle.Urban consolidation centres are a popular measure in city logistics, which aims at rationalizing delivery trips in an urban area. However, although their environmental benefits have been extensively addressed and documented, many of the implementation cases fail to reach sufficient participation and demonstrate a viable business model. Some of the main barriers linked to their implementation are the financial concerns and the stakeholder acceptance. Consequently, the success of these schemes has often been subject to a strong regulatory and financial support from public authorities. Recently, new forms of urban consolidation centre operating models offering a range of value-added activities have appeared, allowing a better integration of these facilities in the overall supply chain. Furthermore, a large number of recent experiments focus on small-scale freight consolidation, relaxing the requirements for material and human resources. The objective of this thesis is to investigate the potential of urban freight consolidation platforms to decrease the costs and improve the performance of urban logistics chains. In particular, the thesis will address factors that influence the viability of these schemes in a framework of market economy.The thesis is structured around three research questions that address (1) the viability of the traditional urban consolidation centre model based on transhipment and consolidation activities (2) the impact of market-based accompanying measures for urban consolidation centre project implementation and the resulting level of stakeholder support and (3) the impact of new approaches in urban freight consolidation platforms and in particular those of new urban consolidation centres operating models and micro-consolidation platforms. By tackling these aspects, the thesis demonstrates that the traditional urban consolidation centre model can present a viable alternative but that the success of the scheme is subject to a large number of requirements that are often difficult to meet in practice. The thesis highlights accompanying measures that can both increase the expected participation in the consolidation scheme as well as the stakeholder acceptance of the scheme, and those that meet a less positive stakeholder response. Finally, the thesis identifies the potential benefits of new operating models of urban consolidation centres and of small-scale consolidation.Doctorat en Sciences de l'ingénieur et technologieinfo:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublishe

A particular approach for assessing the effectiveness of the European R&D intermodal transport research programs

(paper 8b)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Inland waterways transport for city logistics – review of experiences and role of local public authorities

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

URBANWISE: efficient urban deliveries by means of an IT platform

Large quantity of goods and services need to be available in urban areas, where numerous people get together."br" Urban freight transport, for commercial and domestic purposes, account for 20-30% of total traffic volume. All"br" people involved (authorities, companies, residents….) face challenging problems which at its best can be seen as"br" symptoms of a vibrant city: traffic congestion, negative environmental impact and high energy consumption. Up"br" to 40% of the total logistics costs can be attributed to the last mile of goods transport. It is high time to"br" implement smart solutions… like the IT-platform URBANWISE. In this paper we focus on one of the modules,"br" URBANWISE Construction

Development and application of a particular SWOT analysis methodology for the evaluation of e-platforms for intermodal transport management

(paper 8a)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Which lines of action for local authorities to decrease environmental impact of urban freight transport?,

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Investigating the theoretical cost-relationships of urban consolidation centres for their users

Urban consolidation centres (UCCs) are a popular measure in city logistics. Although there are numerous pilot projects and test cases, many UCCs are granted only a short life because they fail to attract a sufficient number of customers. Evidence from literature shows that the cost-attractiveness of UCC solutions for their users plays a major importance in their decision to use these facilities. Indeed, since UCCs involve additional service costs for their customers, in order to be financially attractive, they must demonstrate their ability to decrease delivery costs further in the transport chain, through distance or time gains. Despite the significant interest of the practitioners and the research community in these facilities, there is a lack of knowledge and quantitative tools for assessing the costs of delivery operations and the potential savings by use of UCCs. In this paper, authors propose an analytical approach to estimating costs of deliveries with and without the UCC based on the description of the logistics behaviour of the urban stakeholders from the literature. The analytical framework is then applied to a case of a UCC servicing Brussels. The study shows that the main costs of deliveries are time-related costs and that the use of the UCC can indeed decrease them. The main elements that influence the cost attractiveness of the UCCs are the characteristics of a delivery operations (e.g. number of stops, average number of cargo units per stop or the type of actor who performs the delivery), the characteristics of the UCC (e.g. its location, the service price or the possibility of overnight deliveries) and the characteristics of the services area (e.g. size of the town or delivery density).SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Development and Application of a Transferability Framework for Micro-consolidation Schemes in Urban Freight Transport

AbstractMany recent experiences in the field of urban freight consolidation, focus on bundling goods close to the reception point. We will refer to these as to micro-consolidation initiatives. In fact, whereas in a typical consolidation scheme, the bundling of goods takes place at a distribution centre outside of the delivery area, the micro-consolidation schemes consist of the setting-up of logistical platforms in the heart of urban areas where the goods are consolidated before the final delivery to the customer.This paper aims to offer a closer view into different micro-consolidation initiatives by establishing state of the art and defining common typologies. Furthermore, this paper provides guidelines for the transferability of micro-consolidation measures - based on a study of more than 30 case studies across Europe and of current transferability methodologies developed under several EU projects. A common transferability framework was developed, providing the main dimensions of analysis as well as relevant attributes and indicators. This framework was applied in order to test the transferability potential of the Espace de Livraison de Proximité in Brussels and to select the optimal pilot site for its implementation