Cost-saving Initiative welcomed by Port of Melbourne
ACFS Port Logistics (ACFS) has opened a new empty container depot that will be integrated with the ACFS Appleton Rail Intermodal terminal, which will be operational from Monday.
Branded ACFS e-Rail, it will provide a full empty depot offering for shipping lines, including food quality upgrades, maintenance and repair services, focusing on volumes for export customers in regional Victoria and NSW.
The Melbourne 24 hour, five days a week e-Rail (Empty Depot) facility will also provide local carriers with improved access for the dehire of empty containers, in line with other ACFS empty depot operations, ACFS says.
The service allows rail customers a supply of food quality and/or general purpose containers directly on site, “eliminating the additional cost of empty cartage collection from third-party empty parks that currently incurs exporters and additional costs in the supply chain”.
“ACFS aligned shipping lines have welcomed the development, as it provides a better cost outcome, as well as a strategic advantage for our export customers, whilst also providing flexibility to our rail customers by having containers easily accessible to rail, without the heavy reliance on transport and or outside parks being open for the availability of empties,” ACFS CEO Arthur Tzaneros states.
“In a world of rising costs, ACFS has invested in our customer’s future by reducing the cost of exporting through the Port of Melbourne.”
Read about the ACFS Fremantle venture, here
ACFS quotes Jim Cooper, executive general manager commercial of the Port of Melbourne, as saying he “welcomes the initiative taken by ACFS in continuing to explore and provide more efficient and cost competitive export solutions for Port users.
“By working together we can plan for and develop port capacity and supply chain efficiencies that enhance the competitive position of the Port of Melbourne.”
ACFS counts itself as Australia’s largest privately owned container logistics operator, committed to supporting customers in regional areas, including Western Victoria, the Sunraysia, the Riverina and Central Victoria.
“The ACFS rail terminal services trains up to 1.5km long from regional Victoria and beyond.
“Managing in excess of 140,000 TEU per annum our regional rail customers are supported by ACFS’s 24/7 road fleet and our superior wharf technology systems, keeping customers informed at every step of the way,” the company says.