哈尔滨商业大学论文要求

Chapter Seven Transportation Infrastructure The role of transportation in logistics operations has changed dramatically over the last three decades. Prior to transportation deregulation, the purchase of transportation could be likened to buying a commodity such as coal or grain. There was very little difference between transportation suppliers in terms of product, service, or price. Transportation deregulation in 1980 introduced pricing flexibility and significantly increased the range of services transportation companies could provide customers.

Today a wide range of transportation alternatives are available to support supply chain logistics. For example, logistics managers may integrate private with for-hire transportation to reduce total logistics costs. Many for-hire carriers offer a wide variety of value-added services such as product sortation, sequencing, and customized freight delivery and presentation. Technology has enhanced real time visibility of the location of freight throughout the supply chain and advanced information concerning delivery. Precise product delivery reduces inventory, storage, and materials handling. As such, the value of transportation has become greater than simply moving product from one location to another. This chapter provides an overview of the transportation infrastructure and its current regulatory framework.

7.1 Transport Functionality, Principles, and Participants Transportation is a very visible element of logistics. Consumers are accustomed to seeing trucks and trains transporting product or parked at business facilities. Few consumers fully understand just how dependent our economic system is upon economical and dependable transportation. This section provides a foundation by reviewing transportation functionality and the underlying principles of transport operation.

7.1.1 Transport Functionality

Transportation enterprises provide two major services: product movement and product storage.

（1）Product Movement

Whether in the form of materials, components, work-in-process, or finished goods, the basic value provided by transportation is to move inventory to specified destinations. The primary transportation value proposition is product movement up and down the supply chain. The performance of transportation is vital to procurement, manufacturing, and market distribution. Transportation also plays a key role in the performance of reverse logistics. Without reliable transportation, most commercial activity could not function. Transportation consumes time, financial, and environmental resources. Transportation has a restrictive element because inventory is generally inaccessible during the transportation process. Product captive in the transport system is referred to as in-transit inventory. Naturally, when designing logistical systems, managers strive to reduce in-transit inventory to a minimum.

Advancements in information technology have significantly improved access to in-transit inventory and arrival status of shipments by providing exact location and arrival times.

Transportation also uses financial resources. In the United States approximately 60 percent of total logistics cost is related to transportation services.' Transportation cost results from driver labor, vehicle operation, capital invested in equipment, and administration. In addition, product loss and damage are significant cost. Transportation impacts environmental resources both directly and indirectly. In direct terms, transportation represents one of the largest consumers of fuel and oil in the U.S. economy. Although the level of fuel and oil consumption has improved as a result of more fuel-efficient vehicles, total consumption remains high. Indirectly, transportation impacts the environment through congestion, air pollution, and noise pollution. （2）Product Storage

A less visible aspect of transportation is the performance of product storage. While a product is in a transportation vehicle, it is being stored. Transport vehicles can also be used for product storage at shipment origin or destination, but they are comparatively expensive storage facilities. Since the main value proposition of transportation is movement, a vehicle committed to storage is not otherwise available for transport. A trade-off exists between using a transportation vehicle versus temporarily placing products in a warehouse. If the inventory involved is scheduled to move within a few days to a different location, the cost of unloading, warehousing, and reloading the product may exceed the temporary charge of using the transportation vehicle for storage.

Another transport service having storage implications is diversion. Diversion occurs when a shipment destination is changed after a product is in transit. For example, the destination of a product initially shipped from Chicago to Los Angeles may be changed to Seattle while in transit. Traditionally, the telephone was used to implement diversion strategies. Today, satellite communication between shippers, carriers’ headquarters, and vehicles facilitates more efficient diversion. While diversion is primarily used to improve logistical responsiveness, it also impacts the duration of in-transit storage.

So although costly, product storage in transportation vehicles may be justified from a total cost or performance perspective when loading or unloading costs, capacity constraints, and ability to extend lead times are taken into consideration.

7.1.2 Transport Principles

There are two fundamental economic principles that impact transportation efficiency: economy of scale and economy of distance.

Economy of scale in transportation is the cost per unit of weight decrease as the size of a shipment increases. For example, truckload shipments utilizing an entire trailer's capacity have lower cost per pound than smaller shipments that utilize a limited portion of vehicle capacity. It is also generally true that larger-capacity transportation vehicles such as rail and water are less costly per unit of weight than

smaller capacity vehicles such as trucks and airplanes. Transportation economies of scale exist because fixed cost associated with transporting a load is allocated over the increased weight. Fixed costs include administration related to scheduling, cost of equipment, time to position vehicles for loading or unloading, and invoicing. Such costs are considered fixed because they do not vary with shipment size. In other words, it costs as much to administer a 100-pound shipment as one weighing 1000- pounds.

Economy of distance refers to decreased transportation cost per unit of weight as distance increases. For example, a shipment of 800 miles will cost less to perform than two shipments of the same weight each moving 400 miles. Transportation economy of distance is often referred to as the tapering principle. The rationale for distance economies is similar to economies of scale. Specifically, longer distances allow fixed cost to be spread over more miles, resulting in lower per mile charges. These principles are important when evaluating transportation alternatives. The goal from a transportation perspective is to maximize the size of the load and the distance being shipped while still meeting customer service expectations.

7.3.6Modal Classification

Table 7.4 compares the fixed-variable cost structure of each mode. Table 7.5 ranks modal operating characteristics with respect to speed, availability, dependability, capability, and frequency.

Speed refers to elapsed movement time. Airfreight is the fastest of all modes. Availability refers to the ability of a mode to service any given pair of locations. High- way carriers have the greatest availability since they can drive directly to origin and destination points. Dependability refers to potential variance from expected or published delivery schedules. Pipelines, because of their continuous service and limited interference due to weather and congestion, rank highest in dependability. Capability is the ability of a mode to handle any transport requirement, such as load size. Water transport is the most capable. The final classification is frequency, which relates to the quantity of scheduled movements. Pipelines, again because of their continuous service between two points, lead all modes in frequency.

As Table 7.5 illustrates, the appeal of highway transport is in part explained by its high relative ranking across the five operating characteristics. Motor carriers rank first or second in all categories except capability. Although substantial improvements in motor capability resulted from relaxed size and weight limitations on interstate highways and approval to use tandem trailers, it is not realistic to assume motor transport will surpass rail or water capability.

TABLE11-4 Cost Structure for Each Mode：

．Rail. High fixed cost in equipment, terminals, tracks, etc. Low variable cost

．Truck. Low fixed cost (highways in place and provided by public support). Medium variable cost (fuel. maintenance, etc.).

．Water. Medium fixed cost (ships and equipment). Low variable cost (capability to transport large amount of tonnage).

．Pipeline. Highest fixed cost (rights-of-way, construction, requirements for control stations, and

pumping capacity). Lowest variable cost (no labor cost of any significance).

．Air. Low fixed cost (aircraft and handling and cargo systems). High variable cost (fuel, labor. maintenance, etc.).

TABLE11-5 Relative Operating Characteristics by Mode

Operating

Characteristics Rail Truck Water Pipeline Air

Speed 3 2 4 5 1

Availability 2 1 4 5 3

Dependability 3 2 4 1 5

Capability 2 3 1 5 4

Frequency 4 2 5 1 3

Composite Score 14 10 18 17 16

*Lowest rank is best

Chapter Eight Transportation Operations Transportation is the single largest element of logistics cost. The historical view of traffic departments being staffed with individuals wearing green eyeshades and sitting amidst bookcases filled with tariffs and rate tables is a scenario far from reality in today's competitive environment. Traffic departments commit and manage over 60 percent of a typical firm's logistics expenditures. Transportation managers are responsible for arranging for inventory to be positioned in a timely and economical manner. A fundamental responsibility is to determine whether transportation services should be performed by using private or for-hire specialists. Decisions related to internal versus outsourcing are not totally different from those faced in many other enterprise areas. What is different about transportation is the critical impact that operations have on logistical performance. As operational expectations become more precise, order-to-delivery performance cycles more compact, and margins for error reduced to zero, successful firms have come to realize that there is no such thing as cheap transportation. Unless transportation is managed in an effective and efficient manner, procurement, manufacturing, and customer accommodation performance will not meet expectations. This chapter provides an overview of how transportation is managed within the logistical process.

8.1 Transportation Economics and Pricing

Transportation economics and pricing are concerned with factors and characteristics that drive cost. To develop effective logistics strategy, it is necessary to understand such factors and characteristics. Successful negotiation requires a full understanding of transportation economics. An overview of transportation economics and pricing builds consists of four interrelated topics: (1) economic driver, (2) costing, (3) carrier pricing strategy, and (4) transportation rates and ratings.

8.1.1Economic Drivers

Transportation costs are driven by seven factors. While not direct components of transport tariffs, each factor influences rates. The factors are: (I) distance, (2) volume,(3) density, (4) stow ability, (5) handling, (6) liability, and (7) market. In general, the discussion sequence reflects the relative importance of each factor from the shipper's perspective. Keep in mind that the precise impact of each factor varies based on specific product characteristic.

(1)Distance

Distance is a major influence on transportation cost since it directly contributes to variable expense, such as labor, fuel, and maintenance. Figure 8.1 illustrates the general relationship between distance and transportation cost. Two important points are illustrated in this figure. First, the cost curve does not begin at the origin because there are fixed costs associated with shipment pickup and delivery regardless of distance. Second, the cost curve increases at a decreasing rate as a function of distance. This characteristic is known as the tapering principle.

(6)Liability

Liability includes product characteristics that can result in damage and potential claims. Carriers must either have insurance to protect against possible claims or accept financial responsibility for damage. Shippers can reduce their risk, and ultimately transportation cost, by improved packaging or reducing susceptibility to loss or damage.

(7)Market

Finally, market factors such as lane volume and balance influence transportation cost. A transport lane refers to movements between origin and destination points. Since transportation vehicles and drivers must return to their origin, either they must find a backhaul load or the vehicle is returned or deadheaded empty. When empty return movements occur, labor, fuel and maintenance costs must be charged against the original front-haul movement. Thus, the ideal situation is to achieve two-way or balanced movement where volume is equal in both directions. However, this is rarely the case due to demand imbalances in manufacturing and consumption locations. For example many goods are manufactured and processed on the East Coast of the United States and then shipped to consumer markets in the western portion of the country; this results in more volume moving west than east. This imbalance causes rates to be generally lower for eastbound moves. Movement balance is also influenced by seasonality, such as the movement of fruits and vegetables to coincide with growing seasons. Demand location and seasonality result in transport rates that change with direction and season. Logistics system design must take such factors into account to achieved backhaul movement whenever possible.