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easily. “The flexibility also makes the whole system
safer,” explains Kunze, noting, “If the rail transport
is disrupted for some reason, the load can easily be
transported by truck.” Reliability has utmost priority
in the Viking system: using an online tracking
and tracing tool the customer can keep a constant
eye on the progress of their deliveries. Disruptions
are extremely rare, however: over the past three
years the punctuality rate has been 99 per cent.
Owing to the tangible impact of the transfer from
road to rail, Viking Rail was subsidised for three
years by the European Union within the Marco
Polo II funding scheme to the amount of €1.1 million.
Recognition also came recently from independent
sources: at the end of May, Volvo was awarded
the “Big Logistics and Transport Prize” for Viking
Rail at the Logistics & Transport trade fair in
Gothenburg. The jury honoured both the impact
on environmental protection and the economic benefit
to the company.
“All this serves as confirmation to us that Viking
Rail is a groundbreaking project,” says Lars Langenius,
Member of the Volvo Logistics Management
Board. “We will certainly continue with it for that
reason – and together with DB Schenker Rail Automotive
we are thinking about extending it.” In a
second expansion stage Duisburg, Frankfurt and
Ingolstadt are to be connected to the Viking system
moving forward, with the inclusion of industrial
regions in Czech Republic, Turkey and around
Kaluga in Russia also being considered for a later
stage. ok
Contact | Susanne Kunze
Phone: +49 (0)511 286-4011 |
susanne.kunze@sargmbh.com
Photos: PR (3)
As fast as
lightning
Two daily shuttle trains provide
the inter-plant transport between
the Opel plants in Rüsselsheim and
Kaiserslautern.
Opel is a European car manufacturer. In
addition to its own four plants in Rüsselsheim,
Eisenach, Bochum and Kaiserslautern,
another six plants belonging to the
General Motors group produce vehicles at lightning
speed. Most of them are connected by a
European rail network.
Since 2008, 180,000 models of the mid-size
Insignia saloon have been coming off the assembly
lines of the Rüsselsheim plant every year.
Production at the parent plant is dependent,
however, on the supply of many components
from Kaiserslautern, including bonnets and
chassis parts. The train concept developed by
DB Schenker Rail Automotive together with
Opel/Vauxhall Logistics ensures the reliable
supply of parts for the Insignia’s production.
Two pairs of trains, over 600 metres long, provide
a daily shuttle service between the two
plants. dv
Contact | Jürgen Wernstedt
Phone: +49 (0)6107 509 820 |
juergen.wernstedt@sargmbh.com
liFTeD:
Opel mechanics
assembling an
Insignia in
Rüsselsheim.
Railways |
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