This month we’ve put together a high-level quantification checklist to help you determine the cost of railroad service issues to your company and give you some insights on what you…
The weather outside is frightful, let it… And the song goes on about snow, snow and more snow. Back when I was a grain marketing rail rate maker on the…
Have you ever had a transportation audit? Not unlike an IRS audit which is a hunt to find money and audit of your transportation network is also intended to find…
This blog wanders a bit from our normal direct rail related path. However, it is pertinent with the recent events that are occurring around the world and in particular in…
There’s an interesting phenomenon occurring in the railcar market. There’s a bunch of railcars in storage. Most of those railcars are tank cars, covered hoppers for frac sand and coal…
It seems that regardless of where you’re located in the world, you’re seeing shipments of a number of products being bogged down. When you look at, as an example, consumer…
There’s an interesting phenomenon going on right now in the transportation world. All the parts, of which most are normally stable at any given time, are not stable. Turmoil may…
One trend I find that is incredibly challenging is the “Fishing for Information” trend that seems to rise up when we see significant market changes in the industry or new…
Demurrage is often a continuous touchy topic between railroads and shippers or receivers. I remember dealing with this topic when I started in the rail industry in grain marketing at…
What railcar leasing alternatives are available to your company? The best way to determine your railcar leasing alternatives is to ask relevant questions of your railcar supplier. We have outlined…
Is there any value in managing railcar logistics? This is a question often asked at shipper gatherings across the country, mostly via telecommunications in todays’ environment. Following is a couple…
Having enough railcars or the right mix of railcars has always been a challenge for those responsible. It’s rare that you’re right. Too many railcars and you’re spending money and…