Railroad shipping: AAR says volumes down for week ending May 9

WASHINGTON—The Association of American Railroads (AAR) said today that carload freight volumes and intermodal traffic volumes were down sharply on United States railroads for the week ending May 9 compared to the same week last year. 

Weekly carload freight, which does not include intermodal data, came in at 249,576 cars, down 25.8 percent from the same timeframe last year, said the AAR. And carload freight loadings were down 21.4 percent in the West and 31.7 percent in the East.

Intermodal loadings, which are not included in carload data, totaled 181,662 trailers or containers, down 21.0 percent compared to the same timeframe a year ago. Trailer volume was down 37.9 percent, and container volume decreased 16.4 percent.

Weekly railroad volume was estimated at 26.4 billion ton-miles by the AAR which was down 25.2 percent from a year ago.

And for the first 18 weeks of 2009, the AAR said U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 4,789,321 carloads, which is down 18.8 percent from the first 18 weeks of 2008. Trailers or containers at 3,343,134 were down 16.5 percent, and total volume at an estimated 508.4 billion ton-miles was off by 17.7 percent year-over-year.

Of the 19 commodity groups tracked by the AAR, none were up year-over-year. Lumber & wood products were off by 43.3 percent, and motor vehicles and equipment were down 49.5 percent.

Read the rest of the logisticsmgmt.com article here. 

Recession Watch: How To Position Yourself For The Recovery

- Interesting article from logisticsonline.com

Transport Intelligence is pleased to announce the publication of Recession Watch – March 2009, a critical market assessment of the global transport & logistics industry. The February edition of Recession Watch proved to be a valuable tool for the industry - providing detailed insight into rapidly changing market conditions.

Recession Watch provides comprehensive, timely market analysis and identifies the strategies adopted by the leading players as they ride out the global downturn. Crucially, Recession Watch enables swift response to volatile market conditions - to maximise opportunities and reduce risk.

This month includes a special feature reviewing the leading 3PL's operations and finances over the past quarter. It also includes an article by leading industry expert, Prof Alan Braithwaite, on how to ride the downturn whilst positioning your company for the recovery.

Recession Watch contains the up to date information you need to understand how the industry is being impacted by current market conditions - supporting strategic decision making.

This comprehensive monthly analysis of the transport and logistics market has 5 key components:

• Ti's exclusive Monthly Confidence Index identifying the strongest and weakest logistics sectors
• Vertical Sector Developments and their impact on the logistics industry
• Special Focus: leading 3PL's operations and finances over the past quarter
• Major Logistics/Express Developments: which companies are cutting jobs, hubs, restructuring networks etc
• Monthly / Quarterly Indices: a round up of all the key logistics related indices

Read the rest of the article here.

Logistics firm leases space in new Aurora building

Woodridge, IL (January 08, 2009) - Midwest Warehouse & Distribution System Inc. last month signed a six-month lease for 350,000 square feet in a new industrial building in Aurora. The lease starts Jan. 15 for the space at 4100 Ferry Road, the first building to be completed in the Butterfield East park near the intersection of Interstate 88 and State Route 59. Midwest is the first tenant in the building, which is about 550,000 square feet and was completed in October by Indianapolis-based Duke Realty Corp. Midwest President and CEO Ed Borkowski says the space is to accommodate some annual seasonal overflow from a longtime customer and that Midwest is in talks with other customers that might result in extending the lease. HSA Commercial represented Midwest Warehouse; Colliers Bennett & Kahnweiler Inc. represented Duke.

Midwest Warehouse provides best-in-class warehousing and distribution services to clients across the Midwest region and beyond. With more than 25 years of experience, 20 locations and more than 4.8 million square feet of warehouse space, we are able to meet even the most challenging logistical requirements.

About Midwest Warehousing

Midwest Warehouse & Distribution System (Midwest) is a full-service 3pl company with an outstanding reputation for quality and integrity. For more than 25 years, Midwest has served as the logistics provider of choice for clients who recognize us as trusted business partners invested in their success.  

Midwest Warehouse is headquartered in Woodridge, IL and has 20 convenient locations.  Specializing in cross dock services, pool distribution, paper converting machine company, and food distribution.  For further information about our services, please contact us.