Transportation of perishable goods
From Supply Chain Management Encyclopedia
Russian: Перевозка скоропортящихся грузов
Foodstuff and perishable raw materials for a number of industries occupy about 1% in railroad freight activity, in turnover - 2%, and up of to 4% in income. These goods are subject to spoilage, lower quality and natural attrition during delivery. They require a different approach to solving the technical, technological, managerial and economic issues that arise from accepting cargo for transportation to its issuance. Maintaining consumer characteristics of perishable goods is achieved by creating special conditions to protect from exposure to high or low ambient air temperatures. These features of railway transport laid on refrigerator vans and the corresponding serving and storage infrastructure, which includes the transport and logistics system, called a continuous cold chain. Theoretical foundations of refrigerated transport, the concept of a continuous refrigerated chain and logistics bases delivery of perishable goods were laid by Professor M. Terterov in the mid-1980s.[1]
Perishable goods are transported by railway transport in the following types of cargo and transportation modules:
- Isothermal wagons (refrigerated trucks, wagons, thermos bottles, milk tank, tank, isothermal, tank-wagons),
- Covered wagons,
- Versatile and refrigerated containers.
In the future you can use isothermal cars cooled by liquid nitrogen and thermo-electric batteries. Decentralization of the national economy led to a change in the structure of traffic and the need for change in the ratio of isothermal wagon park. The emergence of small shippers already identified the need for single isothermal wagons, that number is not enough. The growth of small-lot deliveries of perishable goods is almost completely rejects the use of group refrigerated rolling stock,which was gradually re-equipped for single isothermal thermos-vans (hereinafter - the thermos-IV). There is a tendency for wide use isothermal containers in our country. Because of the restructuring of the Ministry of Railways "Russian Railways" and the intensive development of new supplies of perishable goods in 2003 were revised and added the rules transporting perishable goods.[2] These rules are designed by organizations of the Federal Agency of the railway transport together with "Russian Railways", as well as with other concerned ministries and departments of the Russian Federation, Council of Ministers of countries of the CIS.
