The document discusses challenges and opportunities for improving freight transport productivity and resilience in New Zealand. It notes current issues like fragility of export markets and rail infrastructure. It highlights innovations like collaboration between ports and improved communication technology. It emphasizes the importance of resilience against events like natural disasters. The document advocates for more sustainable practices like reducing carbon emissions from shipping and trucking. It argues New Zealand should cooperate more with Australia and lead in traceability of carbon footprints to stay competitive in overseas markets.

1. UNLOCKING THE NORTH ISLAND FREIGHT NETWORK
FOR GROWTH
Productivity – Innovations - Resilience
For Freight Movements
Tauranga Transport & Logistics Forum
16 November 2012- Bay of Plenty Polytechnic - Tauranga
Jean-Paul Thull
Transport & Energy Management
Department of Environmental Management
Faculty of Environment, Society & Design
Lincoln University - Christchurch

2. Focus
Setting the scene with a focus for the day, looking at
– Current situation & challenges
– Innovations
– Resilience

3. Where are we at? 1 April -30 June 2012
• Fragility of export
• Fragility of rail

4. April-June 2012
Exports
•8.4 million tons
•50% wood products
Imports
•2.3 million tons
•$2.3 billion

5. • Reefer export 20’ 40’
– Near full –horticulture season Exports by container type
– Trend could be less 20’ reefer as long
as able to handle weight on the road
• Is 40’ the solution from an economy of
scale in terms of reduced energy demand –
resilience? Versus flexibility

6. Analysis is complex
Predictions difficult
Day to Day business takes over
which leads
to REACTION instead of PRO-ACTION

7. Pro-action means investing and taking risks
And What Are We facing Right Now?
• Korean Shipbuilders facing increase in order cancellations (Naftrade 12 Nov 2012)
• Mitigating buyer non-payment risk (NZECO, Sept 2012)
• Falling commodity prices (coal, timber)
Who is able to take long-term risk in investing into more efficient vessels
by realising that the profit margins are minimal
• Maersk: “The NZ market does not make an adequate return” following
in a USD 1,500 increase per 40’ reefer box (Shipping Gazette 20 Oct 12)
– with competitors to follow
– Pipfruit NZ CEO Alan Pollard confused + concerned as >+$1,60 per carton
– Kent Ritchie (Scales) – small exporters will suffer more
– ExportNZ Catherine Beard is concerned about similar cost increases between NZ-Asia
– RTF indicated that there is no other option than lifting trucking costs
– >> tough specifically for small exporters (eg in horticulture decrease
of using contractor)

8. Road Freight Transport
• Crucial in parts of NZ that have not access to rail or shipping
• Sustainability & productivity can be increased through
– encouraging modern vehicles – reducing fuel consumption
– facilitating payload is maximised through increased collaboration
– Road-Rail-Maritime sharing facilities to best economy of scale
– vehicle management information should reflect on driver’s salary bonus –
low fuel consumption, no speeding should be honoured!
– Encouraging electronic logbooks enabling non riving periods of more than
15 min to be deducted to increase productivity

9. Innovations
• Improving communication, security & building up
trust at all levels
• POAL & POT – joint IT communication platform
(PortConnect)
• Collaboration in a commercially sensitive
environment
• Joint facilities to obtain an economy of scale
• Checking Transport compatibility
• Unlocking the complications along the supply chain
• What is it that impacts on improving the supply chain
from a resilience and productivity point of view
• Technicalities
• Human

11. GEODIS -1000km journey from Bettembourg
(Luxembourg) to Le Boulou French-Spanish border
Auckland- Hamilton – Tauranga ? With new Kaimai tunnel…
plan now, build in 10 years.

12. The government could lead the way by requiring
to reduce the carbon footprint wherever possible

13. Resilience
– International events
– NZ events / natural disasters
– International carbon footprint
acceptance (eg. Shipping – also
trucking, & rail)

14. Resilience - International events
I

15. Belgian ports of Zeebrugge and Antwerp were hardly
affected as the concentration of the strike was in
Wallonia

16. Resilience – NZ specific - Natural events/disasters
– Floods
• road slips, bridges washed away
– Snow
– Earthquakes/tsunamis
– Volcanos
Can lead to full land Network
disruptions
or

18. Rail & Port Network
Coastal shipment resilient as long
as systems in place
– 1 crane at each port can operate
– Entrance to port &able to load/unload
containers, bulk & fuels
– Keep basic equipment for emergency
(old phones, walky-talkies, equipment
not relying on computer networks)
– Government needs to ensure NZ
coastal shipping companies can
survive as need to be seen as part of
national rescue plan
– (Commerce Commission may need to
be involved with international
shipping)

19. Planning infrastructure simply for maximising
efficiency & profits without factoring in
protection from natural disasters in NZ would
be irresponsible
Crucial for NZ to have
responsive coastal shipping
operating to offset potential
natural disasters

20. Resilience of networks ex Napier-Gisborne line
“A Splendid Isolation” by Sheridan Gundry
Draisine -railbike

23. Resilience – Environmental Sustainability –
Carbon Footprint
• The North American Emission Control Area (ECA), under MARPOL,
came into effect from 1 August 2012, bringing controls on sulphur
oxide (SOx), nitrogen oxide (NOx) and particulate matter (PM) for
ships trading off of the coasts of Canada & the USA
• To stay viable in overseas markets, NZ need to lead the way in
traceability of carbon footprint as it will be required or at least be
able to be used as a marketing tool

24. Final reflections
• Commonalities for freight movements:
– High capital investments
– Fixed costs
– Operations within a cyclical and seasonal markets
– NZ and AUS are at long distance from markets
– >> NZ/AUS should cooperate more on strategies/regulations to ease for
example Trans-Tasman shipments
– Australian Productivity Commission’ draft outcome of a recent report
of CER (closer economic relations)
• “Get on with it”
• “Just do it” or “don’t do it”
• “Look further into it”
• “Stop doing it”
– What we need from here on? Entrepreneurial teams to “just do it”

25. Why Tauranga?

26. Tauranga- Auckland
2050
Jean-Paul Thull (FCILT)
Jean-Paul.Thull@lincoln.ac.nz
Thulljp@snap.net.nz