Improving Intermodal Logistics Efficiency in NSW

The report discusses the road and rail networks in NSW, focusing on the need to improve their efficiency. It highlights the importance of public-private partnerships in addressing intermodal logistics facility disruptions. The government has also proposed an action plan, including expanding Port Botany and building a new port facility at Jackson. Additionally, there are initiatives to enhance container operations and improve land usage through sustainability aspects.

Running head: GLOBAL LOGISTICS & SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT
Global Logistics & Supply Chain Management
Name of Student:
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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................2
Challenges of the current logistics network in NSW.......................................................................3
Measures to solve the present situation of NSW.............................................................................6
Government initiatives to improve the present situation.................................................................8
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................13
Reference List................................................................................................................................15

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Introduction
The report has been able to take into consideration the recent rends associated to the
supply chain which is evident in terms of the retailers and the logistics companies located in New
South Wales. The different aspects of the study have been considered with the challenges in
terms of the workforce of the management based in the logistics industry. The different aspects
of the study have been further able to consider the issues related to the congestion in Port Botany
related to the network routes. The important aspect of the study has addressed the situation of
NSW and the different initiatives taken by the leaders market. The main role of the intermodal
companies such as “Qube Holdings Limited, Asciano Limited and Brookfield Infrastructure”,
and the various types of the initiatives which is related to consider the initiatives to resolve
network problems has been discussed in the study. The qualitative problem analysis is
considered with the related issues associated to availability of the land in Sydney and the existing
congestion in the ports. The study has also considered the main potential of the intermodal
terminal at Moorebank located in Western Sydney and stating about the present problems. The
main form of the qualitative consideration has highlighted on the spare capacity of the present
rail routes addressing problems of the capacity and productivity related to the ports. The various
considerations made by NSW Government have taken the initiatives previously in providing the
co funding and the collaboration with the industries for a better facilitation of logistics.
Moreover, the Government responsibilities have been seen to be based on improving the
infrastructure in rail and the network interface which is seen in the research (Teye, Bell and
Bliemer 2017).

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Challenges of the current logistics network in NSW
The Western Sydney is facing several issues relating to the scattered nature of the
terminal points which is responsible for handling of the logistics business in the state. As per the
present guidelines it has been observed that the demand of materials is not met with the
punctuality of the supplies. There has been a severe indifference among the stakeholders were
directly affecting the logistics business of the companies in NSW. The government is further
seen to face several issues for maintaining optimal usage of the land area and port operations like
facilitation of railroad at port Kembla (Assadipour, Ke and Verma 2015).
Logistics and Infrastructure Company such as “Qube holdings” is set to build a big
project relating to intermodal transhipment in Moorebank. However, the intermodal project is on
the verge of facing severe problem due to network congestion and interruption in the trade route
because of upcoming initiative of passenger rail service from Melbourne to Brisbane taken up by
the government. Due to the aforementioned situation the transhipment of the deliveries from Port
Botany to South Australia may get severely affected on completion of the inland rail
construction. As per the situation, several questions are being raised whether open-ended
solution to the tenants in the area will be delivered by Moorebank intermodal terminal. Some
experts also believe that the traffic congestion will increase due to the construction operations
(Liu et al. 2014).
Another issue has been seen in terms of the issues raised by The Liverpool Council
relating to health hazards and emission of carbon due to the construction. In this regard, the
supply chain operations of Zara have been also questioned on the breach of conventional
practices relating to clothing segment. The unethical practices of Zara has posed significant

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amount of ethical concern on the social and working condition and negligence towards its
employees (Roso et al. 2015).
The stevedoring companies has insufficient staff which is identified as another critical
issue which may be faced by the tenants at Port Botany, which is considered to be having one of
the most dynamic supply chain operations in Australia. It has been further discerned that the
existing stevedoring companies such as “Brotherson Dock” and “Container Terminals
Australia (CTAL)” is not having the sufficient staff to handle and will demand of 3.2 million of
twenty equivalent units.
Comparably airport terminals connecting the Western Sydney freight line are facing
similar challenges due to increased air traffic. The increasing level of operations for cargo
handling and the rise of e-commerce business has added two problems relating to supervising the
air traffic in Western Sydney region. A significant negligence on the part of present and the
previous government has been seen in meeting of the long-term goals. The lack of long-term
forecast has significantly affected the environment and brought about raising concerns for health
issues (Fahimnia and Jabbarzadeh 2016).
The Urban areas surrounding Western Sydney is having a significant limitation with lack
of availability of free land. Due to the aforementioned issue there has been a significant
possibility for the intermodal companies to shift their operations from urban areas to semi-urban
areas of New South Wales. The figure given below shows the various types of ports and freight
lines marked in yellow and the passenger rail links marked in grey. The diagram shows the
extent of congestion which is being faced by the intermodal transportation routes such as Port
botany expansion, intermodal logistics centre of infield, southern Sydney freight etc and the

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conflicting zones of passenger services such as Liverpool turn back, South West rail link and
light rail strategy plan (Nguyen et al. 2015).
Figure: NSW, transport routes with conflicts
(Source: MacDonald 2015)
The model developed by KPMG has particularly highlighted on the significant issues
related to lack of skilled labour is visited logistics industry in NSW. This has created several

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barriers to entry for truck drivers and caused significant problems in finding suitable employees
for the logistics operations. In terms of third-party logistics operators the main problem has been
significant with the unavailability of individuals for appropriately handling the cargo to ensure
compliance such as handling of International maritime dangerous goods, handle reefer containers
with care, check lashings of out of gauge cargo and check ship’s ballast and list.
Measures to solve the present situation of NSW
Some of the incumbent infrastructure like “Brookfield infrastructure Partners (BIP)”
has been seen to offer infrastructural capital to companies such as “Qube Holdings and Asciano
Limited”. The resolution to the present problem can be done by improving the port operations at
Patrick Port division. The rational for improving the operations of Patrick Port divisions has been
mainly seen due to its tremendous potential in handling the increased demand of containers and
ability to meet the increased demand for logistics in the long term at Western Sydney region. An
augmented focus needs to be further given with an increased flow of operation and speed to the
rail routes in the region as well.
The identified hindrances of the intermodal logistics can be further addressed with the
intermodal logistics of situated in southern highlands region. This area has enough space for
accommodating additional rail routes and reducing the condition in areas such as Port botany and
Moorebank. Several studies has further suggested there is a great potential along the highway in
connecting West Link M7 which is responsible for directly linking of M7 motorway route to the
western Sydney of NSW. The Government should take significant initiatives in the choice of
facility. It has been further discerned that the Kembla Port seemed to be having tremendous
potential for connecting the existing railroad with Hume Highway via Wilton. As a strategic

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location for improving the supply service has been identified with the intermodal freight route
via Southern highlands. The diagram listed below has been able to identify the areas with
maximum potential in building infrastructural facilities for assisting of logistics operations
(McCue 2017).
Figure: Potential intermodal freight route in Southern Highlands
(Source: Fryirs et al., 2014)
Port Kembla’s rail route is less likely to get affected with the cargo transhipment. The
easy access of M7 and Sydney intermodal can prove to be conducive in improving the existing
services of the logistics hub in Sydney. By creating a link between the aforementioned routes,
NSW as a potential of improving freight transportation with rail routes. The figure has further

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shown the various types of alternative trade routes which can be adopted with Illawarra logistics
zone which has been seen to be passing through Sydney logistics centre. Several studies has
further highlighted on interlinking Sydney logistics via Illawarra district for facilitating new
opportunities with rail routes and maintaining the distribution process in a better way. The
Illawarra district has for the seemed to be having the potential of connecting Moss Vale logistics
hub with rail route. This particular route will prove to be an alternative to entry in Western
Sydney and companies will be able to avoid any sort of network congestion.
Some of the main issues concerning the workforce can be controlled with tie-up of
companies such as Qube Holdings with “Transport for New South Wales (TFNSW)”. This
particular government organisation has focused on improving the present customer service and
delivery cycle associating to the logistics services. The various types of transportation, freight
and logistics companies has also referred as TFL in NSW is responsible for assessment of lack in
the present requirement of skilled engineer and tracking of the shortages associated to present
requirement in the transportation business. Zara has been further impeding progress present
logistics operation with leveraging of the different types of the capital assets. It has made sure
that the increase in the capital investments associated to the production and distribution facilities
are aimed to make the supply chain activities more responsive and efficient.
Government initiatives to improve the present situation
In the past the NSW government has taken several steps to control the problems
associated to the transportation networks. At present the government has been able to promote
the intermodal business through “public-private partnership” also referred to as “PPP”.

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The different types of initiatives taken by the present government have aimed to improve
the supply chain operations at “Qube Holdings Private Limited”. The company has been aimed
to set an intermodal transportation hub linking the suburbs of South Australia via Moorebank to
the Port botany expansion. The approval of the project will not only assist in locating the
exporters and importers but also improve the services of current logistics trade in the “New
South Wales” region. The selected site for the construction is seen to be having free land worth
240 hectares which will be mainly used for storage of industrial plant shipments and supply
chain operations. The existing problems associated to the tenants and the warehouse manager
will be also addressed as they will be able to accommodate more amount of demand for the
logistics services (Stanley 2015).
The aforementioned initiative will also be able to promote the decreasing demand in the
railroad service and improve the scenario of present logistics operation. The logistics operators
and the tenants will further be able to get benefited from the upcoming intermodal project. As
per the statement of Maurice James (Chairman, Qube Holdings), despite of the interstate rail
project initiative taken up by the NSW government, it will not hinder the operations of Qube
Holdings. This is mainly due to the fact that the proposed rail group will operate from
“Melbourne” to “Brisbane” and hands the southern Sydney railroad is less likely to be interfered
by the company’s freight corridor due to unavailability of any passenger train. The main
operation will make possible the transportation route from Port botany to Moorebank. Several
types of other government bodies such as “The Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC)” is
also assisting Qube Holdings in conducting the intermodal project. The NSW government has
sanctioned an amount of $250 Million for the first five year through Commonwealth Bank of

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Australia. The Commonwealth Bank of Australia has further ensured the open access regimes
relating to pricing policies for avoidance of any discrimination in the future.
Several types of other initiatives taken by the third-party logistics operators have been
able to give an equal opportunity in order to access Moorebank terminal. Henceforth, the various
types of initiatives taken up by the government has been beneficial for the entire supply chain
business. Not only the benefits will be evident with the tenants of logistics distribution but also
be able to improve the railway services to stay ahead of the competition with several types of
other modes of transportation facilities.
Some of the various types of significant effort taken up by Government of New
South Wales have further seen to be including the construction of two major airports situated in
the southern Sydney line. The two primary ports of South Sydney have been seen in terms of
Port Kembla (specialising in delivering of grain) and Port Botany. Several types of other
initiatives taken by the State government have been able to refinance the operations at “Enfield
Intermodal logistics centre” and Port Kembla. This initiative is for the seen to be linked with the
“Cooks River Intermodal Terminal” and Port botany (Mulley et al. 2016). The several types of
conflict and resolution process taken up by the government have been illustrated below with the
table as follows:

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Table: Government Conflict Resolution Process for the Existing Issues
(Source: Roso et al. 2015)
Some the other initiatives taken by the Government have been seen in terms of
constructing a high-speed unconstrained access of the National rail network situated in Yamba.

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Figure: Proposed high-speed rail network at Port Yamba
(Source: Ars.els-cdn.com. 2017)
Government has also proposed to improve the facilities of Kembla Port by the renovation
of Princes Highway which will be able to meet the present demand of road transport operations.
The several types of other initiatives of Government have been focused on developing the
terminal at Port of New Castle and ongoing construction of Sydney freight corridor. The figure
depicted below has stated on the improvements made along with the Hume Highway (Stanley
and Brain 2015).

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Figure: Proposed Government initiative to improve the present intermodal
operations
(Source: Graincentral.com. 2017)
Conclusion
The report has been able to show how companies such as Qube Holdings, Asciano
Limited and Zara are affected with the present road and rail networks in NSW. The report has
been further able to use various types of quantitative tools suggest on the ways to improve the
efficiency of the present disruptions. The public-private partnership seemed to be the most
suitable option addressing the issues associated to intermodal logistics facility. A sustainability
aspect has been mentioned by appropriate usage of land resources and construction of logistics
centre at Southern Highlands.

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Apart from the present initiatives, the action plan suggested by the Government has also
aimed at carrying out expansion programme at Jackson Port. The main operations relating to this
is aimed to build a new port facility at Botany and dredge. The several types of other government
initiatives are included in form of building a latest road terminal point for the purpose of
improving the container operations of Port Botany. The government is set to develop container
operations by providing greater facilitation of influx of the large containers at Port botany.

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