Problems of the Present Logistics Network in NSW
Identify logistics management strategies to resolve any issues related to the operational aspects of the company.
The main discourse of the report has illustrated the supply chain (SC) issues among the logistic companies and retailers of “New South Wales”. The main considerations of the study have identified the SC problems pertaining to adjoining ports in “New South Wales” region. Some of the notable mentions of the ports include “Port Botany, Port Kembla and Port Jackson”. The most significant port is considered with “Port botany” which is accountable for handling maximum capacity of materials. The present principles adopted by the “Government” suffers from several issues such as congestion in the network groups and increase in the cost due to congestion. In addition to this, Western Sydney is identified with scarcity of land which intensifies the overall nature of issues around the port area. Some of the major problems of report are stated with the inclusion of “Qube Holdings Pvt. Limited, Kiosk Zara supply chain operation and various other such organization facing a similar issue” (Talebian, Savelsbergh and Moffiet 2016). The recent trends show that Zara is facing critical problems associated to reduced quality of customer service. In addition to this, the report also shows the several concerns related to suppliers breaching of code of conduct, especially in the fast SC services. With particular reference to “Qube Holdings”, the main problem seen with setting up of new intermodal terminal for enhancing the logistic services in Moorebank at Western Sydney. Some of the other findings will suggest on the contributions made by infrastructure players such as Brookfield infrastructure. The latter part of the report has shown contribution of the government in stabilizing the present logistical issues. The overall sustainability action plan has been included with qualitative studies (Roso, Russell, Ruamsook and Stefansson 2015)
As discussed by Fryirs, Gough and Hose (2014) the critical issue faced by Western Sydney is mainly associated with scattered density of terminal ports which are responsible for controlling the logistics operations of the state. In addition to this, based on the present guidelines, the flow of material demand is not served with a timely SC process. There is significant lack of attention to the stakeholders who have a major part in the logistic business. The government is discerned to face several issues in regulating the operations of the port and ensuring optimal usage for available land area in facilitating the “rail route near port Kembla”.
Measures to Solve the Present Situation of NSW
Logistics companies such as Qube Holdings are on the verge of setting up a new intermodal project at Moorebank with several challenges in the network route and risk of interruptions in the trade due to the upcoming project. The main issues due to this project are identified in the “land passenger rail service from Melbourne to Brisbane”. It is also discerned that the transshipment of material from “Port Botany to South Australia” made it significantly affected after completion of inland rail project. In addition to this, there have been several questions raised whether Moorebank Intermodal terminal will be able to deliver the open-ended solutions to the tenants in the area. There are several objections raised by the “Liverpool council” on the potential health hazards due to carbon emission from the construction activities. Exports have also raised the issues on increase traffic congestion from the construction progress (Johnes 2014).
Figure: Areas served under the intermodal terminal at Moorebank
(Source: Moorebank Intermodal Company 2018)
The supply chain network of companies such as Zara is also questionable. It has identified that the company has the conventional practices of SC in the “clothing segment”. Zara believes in the notion of “successful control of products” until it is delivered to the end customers. In order to accomplish this goal, the company has attend various unethical practices which has hampered its social position. In order to improve the present situation, the company needs to give more priority to the social concerns and employees (Low 2015).
It is further identified that the weather in companies is another area where the tenants in the adjoining port region especially near the Port botany faces major concerns. The currently operating stevedoring companies like “Brotherson Dock and Container Terminals Australia (CTAL)” have proved to be inadequate for handling the enormous demand of more than “3.2 million of twenty equivalent units” (Zinke et al. 2015).
Additionally, the airport terminals are facing similar issues for rapid increase in air traffic for connecting routes across the “Western Sydney freight line”. The increasing level of e-commerce activities and cargo operations have posed several issues for supervising capacity of the increasing air traffic. The main action plan by the government mainly focuses in accomplishment of medium-term and long-term goals. The various types of long-term planning are seen with increasing the awareness for health issues and environmental impact. The government is also worried about the increasing problems for lack of the land availability in the Western Sydney region. This is mostly evident in case of urban areas in NSW. The figure given below resembles the freight routes which are currently facing the transit problems of supplying materials. The additional rail route introduced by the “government in 2013 are marked with orange lines, while the conflict zones are marked with yellow lines” (Black et al. 2018).
Figure: NSW Existing Railroads
(Source: Roso et al. 2015)
There have been several models developed by KPMG which has highlighted the problems related to availability of skilled labour in the “logistics industry”. The main barriers to entry pertaining to the front drivers have further increased the scope of problems for logistics operations. The lack of skilled laborers is mostly evident among the 3PL operators which further adds to the problem of the current situations. The discussions of the study associated to the problem have shown that lack of soft skill and leadership roles are the present problems among the employees working in the logistics industry (Teye, Bell and Bliemer 2016).
The improving measures have been initiated by companies such as “Brookfield infrastructure Partners (BIP)” are depicted with offering infrastructural capital support to organizations such as “Qube holdings and Asciano Limited”. Some of the important solution to the present problems are traced with operations of the port that Patrick port division which is seen with tremendous potential for accommodating increased demand for containers. This is discerned to be having a long-term scope of solutions for the present problems of increasing logistics demand in the Western Sydney region. In addition to this, the logistics has been discerned with an increased need for augmented focus for railroads and overall increase in speed of the service.
Some of the present issues in the intermodal logistics of is discerned in the logistics hub of the Southern Highland region. Some of these regions are not having enough space for introducing the additional rail routes thereby reducing traffic congestions near the area of Moorbank and Port botany. Supporting literatures have stated above the potential for constructing new rail routes near Highway connecting the “Westlink M7 which directly connects the M7 motorway route to the western Sydney of New South wales”. There needs to be an augmented focus by the government in selection of appropriate port facility. The Port Kembla which connects the existing railroads of Hume Highway via Wilton is discerned with tremendous potential. It is also seen that the intermodal trade route via Southern highlands has the highest potential in improving the overall SC for the strategic location. The figure presented below shows the red marked thereby suggesting maximum potential areas for supporting infrastructural facilities for logistics center.
Figure: Scope of new railroads to support intermodal transshipment
(Source: El Khayat 2014)
Based on the eviction of the diagram, the rail route near the Port Kembla has lesser scope of getting disrupted with “cargo transshipment via rail route”. The accessing ease is further presented with Sydney intermodal and M7 which has proved to be beneficial in improving the overall services of logistics hub at Sydney. This is done by linking of the various routes as mentioned in the figure and abstention improvement along the freight transportation done with railroads. The figure also suggests alternative routes “Illawarra logistics zone passing through the Sydney Logistics center”. There has been significant number of literatures showing the potential of Illawarra district in building new rail route to connect the logistics center of Moss Vale. This fruit has been further observed with the potential of avoiding any instance of network congestion. Moreover, the Moss vale region near the Illawara rail route is also illustrated in the figure (Schulten and Parnell 2015).
Some of the major problems of workforce needs to be efficiently handled with the strategy partnership of “Transport for New South Wales (TFNSW)”. It will be conducive for the organization’s focus on the present delivery cycle in order to bring about the improvements in customer service and planning the logistics services. The logistics industry and transport freight also termed as TFL in the northern South wales is depicted to be responsible for addressing the problems of shortage in the present requirement of engineers. This significantly resolves the to the problem of shortage of skilled staff in the transportation industry. The various initiatives taken by Zara to improve the SC operations is depicted with “leveraging the capital assets”. “Zara” has ensured to increase the overall capital investments for distribution and production facilities and lead the supply activities to be more responsive in nature. As per the recent studies Zara has invested significant sum of money increase the speed of present SC operations (Schott 2015).
The NSW government previously has been involved in responding to the present issues in the transportation networks. Some of the latest initiatives taken by the NSW government includes increasing the efficiency of the logistics companies via “Public private partnership known as (PPP) initiatives”. By considering the present initiatives led by the government, there is considerable scope of improvement for the present operations of companies such as “Qube Holdings Private Limited”. The company has proposed to set up an “intermodal transportation hub” for connecting “Port Botany with the Suburbs of the South Australia via Moorbank”. The overall approval of the project has not only focused on pressing the importers and exporters but also improving the logistics trade in the “New South Wales region” (Hamilton 2015).
The site selection for construction of the logistics centre is depicted to be comprising of “240 hectares of free land” for supporting the of industrial storage and SC operations. Some of the important concerns can be duly resolve in terms of their warehouse manager and the tenants will be able to compensate for the increased demand for the logistics services. This is due to the fact that, the companies will be able to meet the current requirement capacity. This is also identified with improving the fall in the demand of railroad services. According to the statement given by chairman of “Qube logistics Maurice James”, even if the interstate rail project is undertaken by the government, it will not have any influence on present operation of “Qube holdings”. The proposed rail link will be operational from “Melbourne to Brisbane”, whereas the southern railroad has less chance of getting interfered with the freight route because of unavailability in the passenger train. It will further simplify the transportation route from more than two Port botany. Other government bodies such as “Australian Track Corporation is also assisting the project conducted by Qube Holdings”. Furthermore, “NSW government” has invested “$250 Million in the first five year of the company being operational”. This amount has been further funded by “Commonwealth Bank of Australia”. Commonwealth Bank has assured to include several open access regimes in order to accommodate the pricing policies of the company’s and ensuring they are non-discriminatory nature (Black et al. 2018).
The other initiatives taken by the government is also depicted with “third-party logistics” operators who have “equal opportunity” in accessing the terminal at Moorebank. Henceforth, the main “government policies” have been able to ensure the entire process of setting up the terminal and benefiting the overall SC business. The benefits are not only observed by the tenants but also the “logistics distribution services” as they will be able to stay in competition with facilitation of other transportation modes.
Some of the other scope of initiatives taken by “Government of North South Wales” have been taken into consideration with using the two major ports at Southern Sydney. The two southern Sydney ports include “Port Kembla, which specializes in handling of grain and other Port mentioned here is Port Botany”. The “NSW State government” had taken several proactive measures to refinance the operations that “port Kembla and Enfield Intermodal logistics centre”. In addition to this it has also financed “cooks rail terminal and Port Botany which is of the prime importance as mentioned earlier”.
The image presented above clearly depicts that government have taken several sustainability initiatives in addressing the present issues. There have been other initiatives taken by the government for improving the overall logistics operations at Kembla facilities by upgrading the “Princes highway” which will be able to facilitate the increased road transportation operation. Some of the other initiatives by the government includes terminal development at the “Port of New Castle and stage 1” of the construction process of the “Sydney freight corridor” (Nguyen, Curriem and Young 2015). The improvements encompassing the Hume Highway is depicted below as follows:
Among the different types of initiatives suggested by the government, the present action plans have aimed at expanding the terminal space in Jackson Port and also build a new port facility in Botany. The various types of other propositions by the government into construction of new road terminal points near the container operation at Port botany, which is depicted with a limited scope for accommodating large containers at present. Some of the other initiatives by the government is discerned in the “Warfage at Port Jackson” which will be able to considerably contribute to the growing international tourism and SC operations near the port (Nair-Shalliker et al. 2018).
Conclusion
Some of the main issues faced by Western Sydney is mainly associated with scattered density of terminal ports which are responsible for controlling the logistics operations of the state. In addition to this, based on the present guidelines, the flow of material demand is not served with a timely SC process. Logistics companies such as Qube Holdings are on the verge of setting up a new intermodal project at Moorebank with several challenges in the network route and risk of interruptions in the trade due to the upcoming project. The main issues due to this project are identified in the “land passenger rail service from Melbourne to Brisbane”. The supply chain network of companies such as Zara is also questionable. It has identified that the company has the conventional practices of SC in the “clothing segment”. Zara believes in the notion of effective control of products until it is delivered to the end customers. In order to accomplish this goal, the company has attend various unethical practices which has hampered its social position. The improving measures are taken by companies such as “Brookfield infrastructure Partners (BIP)” are depicted with offering infrastructural capital support to organizations. Some of the latest initiatives taken by the NSW government includes increasing the efficiency of the logistics companies via PPP initiatives.
References
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