Logistics Design Alternatives
There are many logistical advantages connected to BNSF freight yard. One of them is the high rate of growth of shipper and services that are applied on developing the freight yard. This implies that the shipper and services that are developed at the freight yard are many and beneficial to the users. Its location in itself is a great advantage. One of the advantages that streams from this is that there is a small but manageable distance between the location of the freight yard and the location of the automotive plants. In addition, there exist another firm instrumental in providing steel raw materials and is not located too far from the freight company. The freight yard is located very close to the BNSF. According to Blaszak, (2003), this is a strategic place because it connects rail transport between Chicago and California through a route that connects Chicago to the Pacific Northwest. These major routes create a wider avenue for other types of business ventures. There are also avenues of expanding the freight to serve more customers as well as making the customer base a bit wider.
This company is a stronghold in the transport arena. This is because it is one of the leaders in rail transport services. It offers a capacity of more than thirty five million for loads. This means that it is a powerful service provider in rail transport. This provides reasons for it to be used for logistics purposes, adding this feature to the list of advantages that it has. Blaszak, (2003) notes that the freight yard has a section of customer care and advisory services which helps most of their customers to utilize to their maximum, the synergies that are to be applied in making the expansion of the industry a success. The distribution section will be expanded from one to fifty five. This will positively affect the growth of one of the warehouses that is located in Southwest Chicago. The switching yard that the freight yard has is one of the strategies that they have applied makes the building of the train faster and more effective. This has been done through the logistical combining of intermodal and automotive trains. This has helped the company to expand further towards the west. The management has brought the company to great heights because the expansion exercise has started already. Water is one of the resources that the company needs and uses on a daily basis. The presence of water bodies like lakes has helped the company in achieving their goals. The intermodal rail yard ensures standards that increase their ability to transport heavy containers that lead to increased profits after a given duration. This ensures that more goods in the containers are transported within a shorter time.
One of the disadvantages of the freight yard is that there are no branches at the main cities. This makes it hard for customers to get their goods and containers unless they go to the main terminus. There is a great challenge and competition from other modes of transport such as water. Again not every customer will prefer the use of the company. This comes from the competition that the freight company receives from companies that provide different modes of transport. Vandalism has always been a challenge to the freight yard, (Blaszak, 2003).
References
Blaszak, M. W., (2003). The 21st century freight yard: BNSF’s Logistics Park near Chicago. Trains, Milwaukee, 63(1), 18-20
