Athanasios Ballis

COMPARATIVE EVALUATION OF EXISTING AND INNOVATIVE RAIL-ROAD FREIGHT TRANSPORT TERMINALS

Abstract The paper evaluates technical and logistics developments that could lead to increased economic and technical efficiency of rail–road transport terminals. The main design parameters are identified (length and utilisation of transhipment tracks, train and truck arrival behaviour/patterns, type and number of handling equipment, mean stacking height in the storage area, terminal access system and procedures) and analysed. A comparative evaluation of selected conventional and advanced technologies is performed by use of an analysis tool that was developed on purpose. This tool consists of three modules (an expert system, a simulation model and a cost calculation module). The overall outcome of the analysis is a number of cost-versus-volume curves for various terminal configurations. The paper concludes with two groups of results: (a) a comparative evaluation of conventional and advanced technologies that reveals similarities in terms of track numbers and the associated area requirements as well as differences in terms of layout flexibility, number of equipment, stacking policies and personnel requirements. Each design is proved effective for a certain cargo volume range. (b) A critical assessment of terminal capacity issues. It is identified that the capacity limitations are imposed mainly by the sidings/transhipment track sub-system rather than by the handling equipment.

Towards the improvement of a combined transport chain performance

Abstract Within the framework of the promotion of the environmental friendly modes, the European Commission has launched a number of research projects aiming at evaluating technical and organisational innovations that can improve the performance of the freight transport operations in the rail sector. The scope of this paper is to present a modelling approach focusing on the comparative evaluation of conventional and advanced rail-road terminal equipment. The set of models used, consists of an expert system for the terminal design, a model simulating terminal operations and a macro-model implementing rail operating forms and assigning freight flows in the transport network. This approach stems from the fact that the time savings due to efficient terminal transshipment can be used effectively only in combination with advanced rail operating forms.

Development of an expert system for the evaluation of conventional and innovative technologies in the intermodal transport area

Abstract The context of this paper concerns the structure of an expert system based modelling tool that was developed and used within the framework of a recent European research project. The objective of the expert system is to produce alternative “technically sound” terminal designs, based on a number of user-defined parameters (cargo volume, loading unit mixture, layout characteristics, operating conditions, etc.) and equipment selections (conventional or innovative transhipment systems, rail access systems, identification, location and positioning devices, semi-automatic control, information systems, etc.). Each of the above “technological bricks” is identified by its “compatibility”, “performance” and “cost” attributes. The “compatibility” and “performance” attributes–through an interactive interface–enable the development of technically sound terminal designs while the “performance” attributes are also used for the calculation of the equipment service cycle. A simulation module converts the equipment service cycle into train service time, as well as into truck service and dwell times, which are then compared to specific quality of service criteria. The cost of the non-rejected designs is calculated (using the “cost” attributes of all involved elements) and together with the draft terminal layout, the area equipment and personnel requirements, form part of the expert system output.

A COMPARISON BETWEEN CONVENTIONAL AND ADVANCED HANDLING SYSTEMS FOR LOW VOLUME CONTAINER MARITIME TERMINALS

In this paper a conventional low volume maritime terminal equipped with straddle carriers is compared against an advanced automatic stacking crane/automatic guided vehicle alternative. For both configurations a convenient layout was designed, a reasonable level of service (common for both terminals) was adopted, and the required amount of equipment was determined using computer simulation. The results indicate that the total cost per container and the area requirements do not differ considerably between the two configurations although there exist differences in the investment capital and the personnel required.

FREIGHT VILLAGE DESIGN USING THE MULTICRITERIA METHOD PROMETHEE

The development of a freight village in the region of Thriasio, located nearby to Athens is an ongoing project in its early stage. In the present paper three alternative designs of the freight village layout are compared by means of multicriteria analysis and more specifically using the PROMETHEE method. The multicriteria framework consists of selecting the most meaningful criteria of evaluation and the required decision parameters (weights of criteria, indifference and preference thresholds etc). Besides the benefits obtained from the well structured decision approach that offers a deeper insight in the problem, the results of the multicriteria analysis reveal the preference order of the alternative designs.

Introducing Level-of-Service Standards for Intermodal Freight Terminals

The quality of service issue plays a key role in the design and operation of intermodal freight terminals. Though not straightforwardly stated, the level of service offered by these facilities is strongly related to the terminals productivity as well as to the decisions associated with infrastructure investment. Despite its importance, no widely accepted set of service standards has yet been adopted. On the basis of a number of considerations and the findings of relevant research projects, such a set of standards is introduced to provide reference values for investment strategies and terminal design studies and research. This set of standards is also useful for the interpretation of directives at the policy level and to quantified guidelines at the planning level.

Freight Villages: Warehouse Design and Rail Link Aspects

Freight villages reflect a modern way of organizing logistics, transport, and goods distribution activities. Warehouses are a basic element in such building complexes, and their efficient planning and operation is essential for the viability of the system. Warehouse design requires a mixture of analytical skills and creativity. Although effort has been dedicated to defining a global methodological design framework, the most scientific papers on the subject address well-defined, isolated problems. A practitioner may notice, however, that many warehouses offering efficient, cost-effective services are in operation and that several warehouse design manuals exist that tackle aspects of design and operation. Investigating academic and pragmatic points of view, this paper is an attempt to present an overall view of the facility layout and warehouse design problem, and it introduces the analysis and results of the preliminary design phase of a new freight village where issues related to facilities layout, warehouse sizing, and rail connections have been considered.

Airport Site Selection Based on Multicriteria Analysis: the Case Study of the Island of Samothraki

The investigation of alternative sites for the construction of a new airport is a complex task that involves the cooperation among scientists having complementary disciplines. A typical investigation comprises a thorough examination of all pertinent factors: existing and foreseen land use planning, characteristics of wind and weather conditions, operational and safety aspects, interference with the existing road network, earthworks, construction and expropriation costs as well as environmental and socio-economic impacts. The preliminary analysis of the above aspects usually results in more than one alternative solution that satisfies the above criteria in different ways. The next step is the selection of the most appropriate solution, where the use of multi-criteria techniques can be of great value. The scope of this work is to describe such a multicriteria approach, performed within the decision making process concerning the site selection for the development of a new airport at the island of Samothraki.

Implementing the European Transport Information System

The development of the Trans-European Networks and the formulation of a common transport policy are essential elements in the economic and social development of the European Union. Such activities require significant information about current status (passenger and freight transport volumes, congestion, environmental impacts, etc.) and reliable forecasts. The relevant information exists in dispersed, heterogeneous, and autonomous databases throughout Europe, as well as in pertinent transport studies. The European Transport Information System under development is intended to support decisions on transport policies and the Trans-European Transport Networks by accommodating policy-related information in a repository that will be kept up-to-date through well-defined procedures under the control of experts and will be accessible through an Internet-based software tool. A hierarchical structure of criteria, suberiteria, indicators, and variables is used to link policy questions to relevant data sets, which are p...

Criteria for selecting innovative technologies for maritime transhipment facilities

The significant cargo volumes transferred by sea, in combination with the increased technological and operational requirements that international competition imposes, lead to the continuous upgrade of infrastructure and equipment of modern port terminals. Within this framework, a number of new technologies for the transhipment of unitised cargo have been developed and are available in the market. In order to increase the understanding of the potential user of the various transhipment system functionalities, a multi-tier software tool incorporating technical information, visual aids, expert opinions, success and failure cases, best practice from pilot implementations, simulation results and multicriteria decision aids, is currently under development. The context of this paper focuses on the core of the above analysis, which is a set of criteria related to operational and performance aspects of maritime facilities that are taken into consideration in the selection of new transhipment systems.