International harmonised measurement method aims to include modal differences
The search for more efficiencies in freight transport is taking another step with the release of a new International Workshop Agreement (IWA) from the International Organization for Standardization (ISO).
The ISO, which counts Standards Australia as a member, is a United Nations-linked body that promotes industrial and commercial standards.
An IWA is an accelerated option that may lead to the full ISO-standard process and that allows sectors to drive progress rather than rely on national bodies.
The initiative, IWA 16:2015, aims to provide a coherent quantification of the amount and intensity of CO2-equivalent emissions on three particular levels:
- operation of transport chain element (TCE)
- network including company level
- cargo.
“In order to identify best practice and to improve the efficiency of transport chains, an accepted and standardised method for calculating emissions values is needed together with a specification of data requirements,” it states.
This approach allows for analysis to reflect the differing perspectives of carriers, logistics service providers and shippers.
“As analysis has shown, optimisation of emissions for shipments and for networks of individual transport providers requires different approaches,” the IWA document states.
“All other things being equal, for isolated cargo direct routings are usually those with the lowest emissions.
“For transport service providers avoiding empty transportation space will often lead to optimisation.
“Furthermore the characteristics of the various transportation modes need to be taken into consideration as well as those of handling processes, logistics hubs and transhipment centres.”
According to Dr Verena Ehrler and Alan Lewis, who chaired the group that developed IWA 16 in Europe, the added value of the IWA is “the thorough scientific comparison it makes of currently existing standards against the industry and stakeholder perspective, thus building a valid and practical foundation for the development of a global standard for emissions calculation in freight transport chains”.
The full text can be purchased here.