Do your goods have to be transported over long distances and with different kinds of transport tools? Are you worried about the safety of your goods when changing the type of transport tools during transportation? Do you want to reduce the whole transport costs? If so, you’d better take a good look at this article about intermodal transportation.
What Is Intermodal Transportation?
If your goods are carried in a standardized loading unit and transported with two or more kinds of vehicles during the whole freight process, then the mode of transportation you use is called intermodal transportation. The goods in the standardized loading units can move smoothly between ships, trains, and trucks without needing to be handled. There are two kinds of intermodal transportation: international intermodal transportation and domestic intermodal transportation.
International Intermodal Transportation
The goods of international intermodal transportation are packed in 20-foot or 40-foot containers, and stay in the same container during the whole trip. The containers are moved among maritime ships, trains, and trucks; they won’t be opened when changing transport tools.
Domestic Intermodal Transportation
Domestic intermodal transportation goods are transported in 53-foot containers; even though the name of this kind of transportation is domestic intermodal transportation, the goods may come from overseas.
Standardized Loading Unit:
It’s the core part of the intermodal transportation. There is a standard about the sizes and dimensions of shipping containers during transportation set by ISO(the International Organization for Standardization). Standardized containers make maritime freight, rail freight, and road transport able to connect seamlessly. Attention: In practice, the 20-foot or 40-foot international containers have to be transformed into 53-foot domestic containers after arriving at a port, whether they arrive at a transload facility, distributor center, or cross-dock.
Common Intermodal Freight Combinations
The combinations of various types of freight transportation depend on many factors such as the types of goods, the journey’s distance, the requirements of speed, and the access to basic facilities. I’ll show you some of the most common intermodal freight combinations and their applicable situation.
Maritime Freight And Road Transport
If the destination is not far from the ocean port, the combination of maritime freight and road transport will be the best choice. The ocean freight ship transports goods to the port, and the truck is responsible for the final delivery. It is also applicable when there is no railway nearby, and the goods’ delivery schedule is flexible.
Maritime Freight And Rail Freight
After arriving at the port, if the goods still have a long land journey to the final destination, and if the railway is accessible, combine the maritime freight with long-distance rail freight. For long inland distances, it’s not only convenient but also money-saving.
Maritime Freight And River Transport
In areas with canals connected to the ocean, combining maritime freight with river transport is a good idea. The river barge has a high efficiency when transporting, it’s especially suitable for heavy goods or bulk goods.
Road Transport And River Transport
Pairing road transport and river transport together can be considered when it comes to inland transport, and the destination area lacks development but has canals. Since basic rail facilities are limited, you should make good use of the existing conditions.
Rail Freight And Road Transport
Suitable for areas not connected with railways directly. Rail freight is responsible for transporting goods along the railway from or to the station near the destination, and the trucks are responsible for finishing the last or the last miles and delivering the goods to the final destination.
Intermodal Transportation VS. Multimodal Transportation
Although multimodal transportation transports goods with two or more kinds of vehicles, just like intermodal transportation, it’s a different kind of transportation from intermodal transportation. The main differences between them are determined by their method of management and responsibility distinction.
The essential difference between them is that in intermodal transportation, the goods have to stay in the same container during the whole transportation, but in multimodal transportation, the goods may either stay in the same container or change the loading unit when reaching transshipment points.
When it comes to responsibility distinction, in intermodal transportation, the shipper needs to sign contracts with the carriers at different stages of transportation. The carriers are only responsible for their own stage of transportation. There will be several transportation documents. For multimodal transportation, the shipper only needs to sign a single contract with one carrier, the multimodal transport operator, who is responsible for overseeing the whole transportation.
In summary, the core of intermodal transportation is the standardized transportation container, while the core of multimodal transportation is the unification of contract liability. However, many logistics companies now provide the service of one operator overseeing the whole transportation under a single contract on intermodal transportation, just like multimodal transportation. This improves the simplicity and convenience of intermodal transportation while keeping its advantage of standardized containers.
Advantages of Intermodal
Saving Costs
In terms of fuel, for example, the combination of rail freight and road freight can save more fuel per ton and per mile than single road freight. The standardized loading units help reduce the costs of handling goods. The unit transportation costs can also be reduced by transporting goods with high-capacity transportation vehicles like ships and rail for long-distance transportation, especially when it refers to heavy transportation.
High Efficiency And Safety
Placing the goods in standardized containers without changing in the midway can reduce the process of handling at transfer points, improve the transport speed, and minimize the risk of loss and damage. The process of transportation is simplified by different carriers’ seamless coordination, which improves the probability of goods arriving on time.
Flexibility
Intermodal transportation has great flexibility. The company can combine the advantages of different transportation modes and come up with the best transportation solution according to the types of goods and delivery requirements. For example, some intermodal transportation routes can avoid passing by the congested ports to save time and logistic costs.
The combination of different transportation modes can also allow companies to adjust their transportation capacity according to the actual demand, which makes good use of resources.
More Opportunities
Intermodal transportation provides more transportation and route options, from domestic transportation to international transportation, so it can complete the transportation of goods to many destinations. Your business can get more opportunities and possibilities.
Environment Friendly
Saving fuel not only helps reduce the costs of money but also contributes to sustainable development. Arranging rail freight and ship freight in the intermodal mode can significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions, compared with single-truck freight.
Challenges of Intermodal Transportation?
Balance of Time And Cost
Choosing water freight and rail freight as the main part of your intermodal route can usually reduce your costs. Transporting your goods with trucks or an airplane can deliver the goods at high speed. You should confirm the requirements and the priority of the goods first and arrange the appropriate intermodal transportation plan. What’s the top priority? Cost or time.
Limits of Infrastructure
Intermodal transportation is heavily dependent on basic facilities, such as ports, railways, accessible roads, and inland warehouses. You should know about the local infrastructures and their capacity constraints, and arrange the best intermodal transportation plan using the objective conditions.
Coordination
Strong coordination is very important, and can be complex. The time schedules have to be arranged properly, and the time conflicts should be avoided. Positive communication is also needed to bridge the gaps. If there is something wrong with the documents, it can be troublesome, so technology tools that record data at any time are also very important.
Documents Required for Intermodal Transportation
IBL(Bill of Lading)
It is issued by MOT(the Multimodal Transport Operator) and covers the entire transportation process. It is regarded as a receipt for goods, the proof of contracts, and the goods’ property rights.
HBL(House Bill of Lading)
In intermodal transportation, the goods are transported in different sections and responsible by different carriers. The MTO issues waybills to carriers as each transportation section operational basis.
Commercial Invoice And Packing List
The main content of the commercial invoice includes the name and the value of goods, trade incoterms, and the words” Intermodal Transportation”. The important content should be the same as the content of IBL. Packing list refers to the content about the goods’ package specification, numbers, weight, and other detailed information. The loading and unloading requirements of goods also have to be written if the transportation modes change.
There are also required documents, such as different kinds of transportation licenses and a full insurance policy, used to clarify the insurance liability range.
Conclusion
Intermodal transportation is a good choice for improving the supply chain. Its flexibility makes it possible for companies to arrange the goods’ transportation according to their own needs of efficiency and saving costs. The standardized loading unit ensures the safety of goods. Although it has challenges, you can get a better supply chain after operating successfully.
FAQ
Is intermodal transportation really cheaper than pure truck transportation?
Yes, one of the core advantages of intermodal transportation is cost savings. Replacing parts of the truck transportation with rail transportation and water transportation can significantly reduce the costs of fuel, labor, and vehicle maintenance.
Does intermodal transportation have to take longer time?
It depends on the situation; different routes and distances may lead to different situations. The speed of rail transportation and water transportation is lower than highway transportation, and it takes extra time in intermodal transportation when transferring, but the water transportation and rail transportation are stable and predictable; they have a stable time schedule. Highway transportation has a high speed, but is affected by many factors such as weather and traffic conditions.
Are all types of goods suitable for intermodal transportation?
Most of the common goods that don’t have high requirements for transit time are suitable for intermodal transportation. However, there are goods that need to be refrigerated, need to be transported to the destination at an extremely high speed, or cannot fit in standardized containers. These special goods are obviously not suitable for intermodal transportation.
How to track the goods transported by intermodal transportation?
It’s not difficult to track the goods of intermodal transportation, even though the goods have to be transferred and the transportation vehicles have to be changed during the transportation. There are advanced cargo tracking systems provided by logistics suppliers and railway companies. You can check the location and status of goods at any time.
Is intermodal transportation suitable for goods with high value or fragile goods?
Yes, intermodal transportation is very suitable for fragile or expensive goods like laptops. The goods are packaged in standardized loading units throughout the whole process of transportation. This mode can significantly reduce the probability of damage and loss caused by goods transfer.
Is air transportation included in the intermodal transportation?
Not in practice. The standardized loading units of air transportation are aviation containers, which are specially designed to make the best use of the aircraft cargo hold space. Its shape, size, and strength are different from either the 20-foot or 40-foot international containers or the 53-foot domestic containers. They are incompatible.
