Russian Railways Logistics (RZD Logistics) has launched a dispatch control centre for Ford Sollers at the Alabuga special economic zone (SEZ) in the central Russian region of Tartarstan. Ford Sollers is RZD Logistics’ first client in the zone and the services supplied by the centre are designed to enhance inbound deliveries to the Ford Sollers Elabuga assembly plant located there.
Container trains carrying parts for the carmaker are forwarded by Kuibyshev Railway to Tikhonovo station, which is the nearest station to the Alabuga SEZ. From there RZD Logistics is providing fleet operations control and wagon delivery to the SEZ terminal via a low traffic route timed in accordance with Ford Sollers production schedule.
The RZD Logistics centre is also providing planning optimisation, customs clearance, reception and dispatch of the container trains.
“[The] RZD Logistics team coordinates SEZ Alabuga container terminal operations, provides information support and communicates with RZDL separate subdivisions, customs authorities and other parties involved in the transportation process,” said the company in a statement.
The service supports a doubling of container handling to the factory, equal to 240 TEU containers a day.
According to Igor Kireev, head of outbound logistics at Ford Sollers Elabuga, the coordination of the carmaker with RZD Logistics and Kuibyshev Railway on the transport of the material means time saved on forwarding and loading, which in turn improves car turnaround rates and reduced transport costs.
The partnership between Ford Sollers Elabuga and RZD Logistics is currently contracted until the end of 2014 and involves a preliminary transport volume of 50,000 TEUs.
