Foldable container in empty container repositioning in intermodal transportation network of Belt and Road Initiative: strengths and limitations

In 2013, the concept of the ‘Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road (Belt and Road)’ was initiated by the Chinese government, which involves Asian, European and African continents and their adjacent seas. Logistics plays a core role in such a large framework of economy and trade. In recent years, China, European Union, and Southeast Asia pay much attention to the design and development of the intermodal transportation network towards both economic and environmental efficiency. In this paper, we propose an empty container repositioning model in the intermodal transportation network of Belt and Road (B&R) Initiative by considering both standard and foldable containers. In this model, empty containers are repositioned from the inland of the original area, such as China, to other areas of B&R Initiative related countries and regions, such as European Union and Southeast Asia. We develop a mixed integer linear programming model to determine the optimal repositioning of empty containers via the intermodal transportation network. An Artificial Bee Colony algorithm is developed to solve large size problems in practice and numerical experiments are conducted to show the efficiency of our proposed algorithm. We provide managerial insights regarding the impact on the network performance of foldable containers transportation.     

Intermodal route selection for cargo transportation from Korea to Central Asia by adopting Fuzzy Delphi and Fuzzy ELECTRE I methods

Due to the increase in trade from Korea to Central Asia, an efficient intermodal route for transporting cargo is important. Intermodal routing for long-distance transportation faces operational challenges, such as customs clearance, track gauge differences, and climate limitations. The initiative of the Silk Road Economic Belt recently proposed in China could improve trade and transport links in Asia and create an efficient transportation route that focuses on the railroad service provided in China. The objective of this study is to obtain an evaluation structure for intermodal routing and then find the route for transporting cargo from Korea to Central Asia under China’s Silk Road Economic Belt with integrated Fuzzy Delphi and Fuzzy (Elimination Et Choice Translating Reality (ELECTRE) I methods. After a sensitivity analysis is performed, development strategies and alternative routes are suggested. The results show that among the five principal factors, total cost is the most important factor for logistics companies when they select a transportation route, followed by reliability, transportation capability, total time, and security. Of the sub-factor weights, transportation costs and cooperation and emphasis among state organization are important. In the intermodal route results, route 3, Incheon to Qingdao to Horgos to Almaty, is preferred.     

The role of dry port in hub-and-spoke network under Belt and Road Initiative

Dry port plays increasingly an important role in the integration of inland regions with seaports, and cross-border inland ports especially in the context of Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) originally proposed by China. This paper studies a logistics network connecting the inland regions by dry ports based on a two-stage logistical gravity model. First, a basic logistical gravity model is developed to analyze the radiated inland regions from dry ports, where the logistical quality of dry ports is calculated by principal component analysis. Second, considering mutual impacts among dry ports, seaports and cross-border inland ports, the influence of logistical gravity on the network is examined by using a coefficient based on the Ordered Weighted Averaging Operator in multi-attribute decision theory. An improved logistical gravity model is further developed to investigate the logistical connections among various ports (e.g. dry ports, seaports and cross-border inland ports; hub and feeder ports). Then, a hub-and-spoke network can be established. Dry ports are potential to connect to the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road. So a Chinese case is used to verify the proposed method. The strategies of embedding inland regions in the BRI are discussed based on the experimental studies.     

Global logistics city concept: a cluster-led strategy under the belt and road initiative

This paper develops a cluster-led strategic policy framework to assess the strategic positioning of key global logistics cities in Asia, most of which are affected by the ‘Belt and Road (B&R) Initiative.’ One of the key challenges that the B&R Initiative is facing is underdeveloped logistics infrastructure in Asia, not to mention road congestion, dilapidated infrastructure, incessant supply chain disruptions, and capacity constraint, which imposes significant economic costs.

Global logistics cities are evaluated on logistics infrastructure capacity and service responsiveness. This involves selecting the key global logistics cities, identifying key indicators, standardising and indexing, mapping dimensions of global logistics cities, and developing the cluster-led strategic policy framework.

The results indicate the prevalence of a multi-tier system wherein Shanghai and Hong Kong have attained the maturity of a global logistics city, whilst Manila, Jakarta, and Bangalore are making slow but steady progress in that direction. In contrast, Dhaka, Phnom Penh, and Ho Chi Minh City are showing potential but require further enhancement through significant investment in infrastructure and service delivery improvement.

The cluster-led strategic policy framework formulates actions and strategies through which emergent logistics networks can be strategically aligned and functionally integrated with B&R-oriented global trading hubs and transport corridors..     

Development of an IoT-based container tracking system for China’s Belt and Road (B&R) initiative

To ensure the successful implementation of China’s Belt and Road (B&R) Initiative, it is essential to enable the real-time monitoring of containers’ locations, prevent theft during cargo delivery, ensure more efficient logistics management and reduce carbon emissions. For this, it is vital to have an economic and effective system to track and control containers across multiple countries. However, this requirement cannot be met by today’s container tracking systems because they are either limited within the borders of each country or expensive to employ internationally. This study thus presents a framework for an IoT-based container tracking system that enables users not only to grasp the international flow of container movement with one check but also to achieve smooth cross-border procedures. To verify the system’s performance, an empirical test was made for an actual container shipped from Korea to Poland. The test results showed that the system could successfully track the location of the container in real time across international borders. Last, this study discusses the policy development and international cooperation that should take place to enable the introduction of this container tracking system.     

Effects of the ‘Belt and Road’ initiative on the wine import logistics of China

China’s Belt and Road (BR) initiative is expected to facilitate international trade between the countries involved. In this study, we review the special requirements of wine logistics and the market growth potential of wine consumption in China. A model minimizing generalized logistical costs is developed and applied to wine imports in China, so that the best candidate cities in which to locate transport gateways and distribution centers can be identified. Our analysis suggests that the most preferred gateways are Shanghai, Tianjin, Guangzhou, and Hong Kong, which all have similar delivery costs. In comparison, Beijing and Chongqing have much higher delivery costs, mainly because they do not have good access to marine transport and/or efficient domestic distribution networks. For long-distance intercontinental transport of large volumes of wine, marine shipping remains the only viable delivery mode. However, wine distribution within China extensively uses air, road, and water transport. Therefore, cities with excellent multi-modal transport services are better positioned to become wine logistics gateways. Our study also highlights the importance of value-added services and good government support, which are important factors that influence distribution costs and quality.     

Development of port service network in OBOR via capacity sharing: an idea from Zhejiang province in China

The ‘Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road’ (One Belt One Road, OBOR) strategy initiated by the Chinese government has a significant impact on the business and logistics modes which involves Asia, Europe, Africa, and their adjacent seas. Many countries and ports are developing new strategies that are suitable for this economic environment. Compared with many ports in the world, the ports in Zhejiang province of China have a novel property. In addition to Ningbo-Zhoushan port, there are several other sea ports and river ports in that province. In this paper, we propose a concept of port service network that consists of a huge hub and multiple ports. Ports of small and medium sizes can share their capacities of different types of port service with the hub when the service capacities are integrated into the network. We develop a mixed integer nonlinear programming model to determine the optimal decisions in such a network with constraints on the budget to conduct integration. An optimization algorithm incorporated with a genetic algorithm is developed to solve large size problems. We provide managerial insights on the policies of government, including expanding port capacity, reducing fixed integration cost, and providing better financial condition.     

中国企业投资进入希腊港口的启示

中国中远集团获取了比港2#、3#集装箱码头35年特许经营权,并使比港重焕生机,以实例验证了"一带一路"21世纪海上丝绸之路互联互通合作模式,为中国在希腊、欧洲乃至世界带来积极影响。本文结合此案例,分析中国企业投资进入欧盟经济较发达国家的前景,为今后类似投资项目提供一定的参考。     

Structural relationships among shipper’s perception,value, and choice intention of Korea–China train ferry service

ABSTRACT

The logistics environment between China and Korea has been changing rapidly in line with the ‘Go West’ policy of international trade and logistics area. The policy includes the BRI, Western Development Strategy, and Korea–China FTA. Against this background, the Korea–China train ferry (KCTF) is being newly illuminated as an alternative mode to cope with the logistics environment between Korea and China. One of the key success factors of the KCTF depends on, among others, shippers’ perception, which will affect the choice and the successful operation of the KCTF. From this perspective, this paper develops seven hypotheses based on the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) and Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). We test these hypotheses using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) to explore the structural relationship between shippers’ behavioral beliefs influencing the perceived usefulness, the attitude toward and intention to choose the KCTF. The test results confirm that among the behavioral beliefs, transport accessibility in association with an efficient network of inland roads and railway networks is an important prerequisite. In addition, we verified a high statistical significance in the structural relationships among perceived usefulness, the attitude toward and the intention to choose the KCTF.     

Logistics connectivity considering import and export for Chinese inland regions in the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road by dry ports

This investigation studies the logistics connectivity of inland Chinese provinces along the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road (MSR) from the perspective of the oriented cooperation relationship between seaports and dry ports in inland regions. The logistics connectivity is measured based on the import and export data. First, complex network theory is used to develop a system for evaluating logistics connectivity of inland regions, involving metrics of susceptible-infected-recovered, and improved closeness centrality proposed to drawing on the characteristics of the studied network based on closeness centrality. Second, based on collected data, 136 dry ports in China and 127 seaports along the MSR have been used to construct an empirical network that covers 15 inland provinces of China. Then, the accessibility and importance of inland provinces are analyzed, and key points that serve the improvement of the logistics connectivity of inland provinces are mined and summarized. An example of an improved scheme for the connectivity of inland provinces is presented to demonstrate the application of these key points. The conclusions drawn support decision-making for local governments to improve the logistics connectivity of inland regions in the international logistics network, and then strengthen the participation of inland provinces in the MSR.