contents

europe
 
Transport Logistic 2009

The word sustainability is on everybody´s lips. Companies in the transport and logistics sector are well aware of their responsibility for the environment, and are developing strategies to counteract climate change, resource shortages and rising energy prices. Once attention focused on supplies of primary raw materials such as crude oil and natural gas, but now secondary raw material sources are increasingly in the spotlight, such as electronics waste. Although the latter cannot yet be acquired at the same cost as primary raw materials, the price gap is getting ever narrower.

Also, biofuels such as biodiesel, vegetable oil, ethanol, biomethane and synthetic biomass-to-liquid (BtL) fuels are reducing CO2 emissions and already account for 7.5 percent of total fuel consumption in Germany. Car manufacturers are working on alternative drive technologies, for example electric engines, fuel cells and hybrid solutions. In inner cities and urban areas in particular these vehicles are ideal. Transport companies are teaching their employees how to drive in a fuel-efficient way. The goal in all these efforts is to reduce emissions. Sustainable logistics brings not only an image boost, but also economic advantages. Green logistics is 'in'. Moreover, sustainability strategies are becoming a factor in competition.

For: "When customers 'punish' suppliers because of a poor environmental performance by switching to the competition, this means loss of sales and profits. Product manufacturers have observed this phenomenon now for many years – in the form of high customer demand for organic products. In logistics, however, this process is still in its infancy. One current example are the new services that have been developed by logistics providers whose customers are increasingly asking for 'green' solutions because they are concerned about their CO2 footprint, " says Prof. Dr.-Ing. Frank Straube of the Logistics Department at the Technical University of Berlin.

In practice less than 15 percent of industrial and commercial enterprises today are getting to grips with the highly topical theme of the 'Carbon Footprint Check', whereby an overall assessment is made of CO2 emissions at product and process level. Yet almost one in four companies say they are intending to measure their CO2 emissions in the future. In addition many sustainability managers in the companies have already recognised that facilities can just as easily be supplied with electricity from environmentally-friendly sources or renewable energy such as wood-based fuels. Energy and processing systems at warehouse and transhipment facilities are intended to help reduce emissions and improve the eco-balance.

There are various approaches towards a green strategy for logistics. Examining the entire value-added chain for its environmental effects is a long and difficult process. Yet the success of green logistics is measured by the volume of emissions a company can save. Companies that do get involved in climate protection and have managed to reduce their CO2 emissions can reap economic rewards – even though green investments have a longer amortisation period.

At transport logistic 2009 in Munich logistics professionals will be putting their delivery chains under the eco lens and presenting their experiences with 'green' projects: An info market on 'Green logistics – Risks and opportunities of ecology-oriented logistics' is being held on 14 May from 15:30 to 17:30 in the forum in Hall B2. The sponsors of this forum are the Fraunhofer IML and the trade magazine Logistik Heute.

The 12th International Exhibition for Logistics, Telematics and Transport takes place from 12 to 15 May 2009 at the New Munich Trade Fair Centre. transport logistic is the world´s biggest exhibition for the multi-facetted industry of moving goods by road, rail, water and air. The fair´s portfolio covers logistics and freight transport, telematics and in-company transport and material flow. Integrated in transport logistic 2009 is Air Cargo Europe, an exhibition and conference for the global air cargo business taking place for the fourth time.

The extensive conference programme and the trade conferences, the 4th Air Cargo Europe and the 5th marilog for maritime logistics, provide an expert overview of new markets, trends and innovations in the international transport and logistics industry. In 2007 transport logistic attracted 1, 582 exhibitors from 57 countries and 47, 636 visitors from a total of 113 countries. The statistics for the fair are independently audited on behalf of the Gesellschaft zur Freiwilligen Kontrolle von Messe- und Ausstellungszahlen (FKM), a society for the voluntary control of fair and exhibition statistics.



write your comments about the article :: © 2009 Exhibition News :: home page