MILAN, June 18 (Class Editori) -- Trains from and to China are playing a key role in the logistics sector; in fact, rail transport is growing more than the air and the maritime ones, which, however, accounts for more than 80 percent of the flows. After the positive data from Italy concerning the railway line which links Xi'an to Melzo (Milan) in 14 days every week and is managed by Rail Cargo Group, today the trend has been confirmed by the French GEFCO as well, leader in the automotive logistics sector.
GEFCO has transported 500 million automotive spare parts from Wuhan to France, by ensuring one of the first block trains soon after the end of the lockdown that had been imposed in order to tackle the COVID-19 global crisis.
With a high request of rail transport from China and the majority of trains which stop their route in Germany, GEFCO has worked with rail operators and terminal managers in order to coordinate the transport and plan a dedicated block train directly in France.
The cargo of the 41 containers of the suppliers' factories from Shanghai and Chengdu arrived at the Lille Dourges terminal (North France) in 19 days, by travelling 10,000 km through China, Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus, Poland, Germany and then France.
"The railway solutions are showing their value in terms of sustainability, cost-effectiveness, transit time and reliability", as Alice Defranoux- Global Rail Manager of the French group- has explained.
GEFCO has implemented contactless procedures at terminals in compliance with safety procedures adopted in order to face COVID-19 and it has transported for three weeks hermetically sealed material with the aim of ensuring the non-transport of the virus.
The railway logistics represents an important service because it provides the cheapest and the most sustainable solutions for the environment compared to air transport. This service of block train from China to Europe has guaranteed a decrease by 4,500 tonnes of CO2 emissions compared to air transport.
After the suspension of automotive factories activities across Europe, GEFCO has found some solutions in order to stock the automotive spare parts in warehouses of the countries where it was necessary, with the aim of providing customers a quick access to their products as soon as the activities restarted.
GEFCO is global leader for the supply chain multimodal solutions and European leader for automotive logistics; it is active in 47 countries with an integrated global network and serves 300 destinations worldwide. In 2019, it achieved earnings amounting at 4.7 billion euros.
(Source:Class Editori)
Notice: No person, organization and/or company shall disseminate or broadcast the above article on Xinhua Silk Road website without prior permission by Xinhua Silk Road.