INDIANAPOLIS (Aug. 6, 2013) - A new governor and a new intermodal service will deliver major excitement at the 2013 Indiana Logistics Summit. Gov. Mike Pence will provide his first keynote address at Indiana's premier freight transportation conference, which will feature discussions about the new 'nonstop' rail service that is bringing Asia closer than ever to Indiana businesses - reducing transit times by a week in some cases.
The logistical advantages and opportunities created by this "game-changing" development will be the main focus Oct. 9-10 during the Indiana logistics Summit at the Indiana Convention Center in Downtown Indianapolis. The 11th annual conference, co-hosted by Purdue University, Conexus Indiana and Ports of Indiana, will be attended by more than 300 top national experts in transportation, distribution and logistics.
"This will be a 'can't miss' event for any company who imports or exports via Asia." said Rich Cooper, CEO for the Ports of Indiana. "Indiana handles over $500 billion in freight shipments per year, providing hundreds of thousands of Hoosiers with careers in logistics. Gov. Pence has named logistics as one of Indiana's core industries for future job creation efforts, and this will be his first opportunity to talk about his vision for logistics with industry executives from around the state."
The governor will be joined by top executives from railroads, shippers and ports that will play key roles in a new international connection that is being developed for intermodal freights shipments moving between Asia and the Midwest.
Earlier this year, the Indiana Rail Road Co. and the CN Railway (CN) announced an agreement on the construction of an intermodal terminal in Indianapolis and their plan to offer Indiana importers and exporters a new West Coast rail connection for containerized products moving to/from Asia.
"This is an exceptional opportunity for Indiana importers and exporters who for years have asked for all-rail, direct West Coast intermodal service" said Thomas Hoback, president and CEO of Indiana Rail Road. "The CN and Indiana Rail Road service offers a way for shippers to avoid the bottleneck of Chicago and the congested I-65 corridor to Central Indiana. This service provides a more reliable, consistent and environmentally-friendly movement of goods that is less susceptible to costly weather and congestion delays."
Indiana Rail Road opened the new intermodal freight terminal at its existing rail yard on Senate Avenue in downtown Indianapolis, less than a mile from Lucas Oil Stadium. The expanded terminal has begun handling a few initial shipments but it will celebrate its official opening on Oct. 10.
National clothing retailer OSP Group has already altered its supply chain to serve its Indianapolis facility through the new intermodal service.
"This new partnership will allow our product to circumvent Chicago, reducing transit times by a minimum of two to three days, and even more during peak holiday times," said Chip Edgington, executive vice president of operations, OSP Group. "Our organization, like many other service providers across the state, recognizes the opportunity to reduce a full week out of the supply chain as the difference between winning or losing customers. It is clearly a decisive advantage for Indiana companies."
Other topics at the Summit will include: "Panama Canal vs. Suez Canal & The New World Order of Intermodal Shipping," "The Fastest Growing Port in North America - Prince Rupert, British Columbia", "The Next Big Atlantic Coast Port", "Quantifying the Value of Faster Intermodal Service" and "The Back-Haul Advantage: Containerized Grain and Indiana Exports." More participants and related events will be announced over the next few weeks.
For registration details, sponsorship opportunities and continued updates on the 2013 Indiana Logistics Summit, visit www.indianalogistics.com.