In 2009, a growing shift to multimodal transport in logistics and international supply chains will be more visible and provide a greater range of options and cost-effectiveness for shippers. There will be a continued evolution from the days of a single mode focus, whether truck, rail, air, ocean, barge, pipeline or intermodal, to a broader framework of multimodal networks and transactions.
Confronted by today’s soft economy and future growing global economies, and faced with stretched global resources, trading bloc-driven localized flows, and continued flexing of shipment sizes with short order-cycle requirements, logistics managers will reassess the extended supply chains formed during the last quarter century. To solve these challenges in 2009 and beyond, multimodal solutions can provide a wider range of options than single-mode approaches might.
The next generations of transport and logistics managers must understand these modal and multimodal solutions through industry support for higher education institutions and professional organizations that provide for transport and logistics fundamentals in international supply chains. The new generation needs to hear, in company-supported campus visits, down-to-earth discussions, not just canned corporate material, of recent projects and assignments that convey insights and enthusiasm about what an industry, company and logistics managers do. Company sponsorship of student visits to facilities provides exciting and effective grounding of classroom material.
Finally, in 2009 and beyond, transport, logistics and supply-chain companies need to sponsor transport/logistics faculty, established faculty as well as those new to logistics or academics, to visit and observe their facilities, a practice of the past, for a broader perspective than might be gained as a faculty consultant. As an example, Ingram Barge recently sponsored faculty from Maine Maritime Academy to observe and discuss not only corporate processes and controls, but also river time on a tow of barges, culminating in a review and discussion of training programs and facilities. This visit included an introduction to the multimodal realities that the barge, rail, ocean and truck industries can provide. A sponsored experience provides insights and material for those who teach the next generations how to understand and apply the fundamentals and range of options provided by multimodal for international supply chains.