Freight Transport Planning And Management

Freight Transport Planning and Management

This 2-day course is designed to help planners, policymakers and consultants to develop a better understanding of freight operations and its specific needs.

The course has two core elements. The first covers the broader context of freight operations. The second provides an introduction to various quantitative techniques for managing freight movements, in order to promote an understanding of how the industry makes use of modern management techniques. In the first element, participants are provided with a thorough understanding of the key issues in national and international freight transport policy, together with the factors affecting the logistics decisions of individual organisations. The principles are illustrated with up-to-date examples from the UK and internationally. Specific attention is given both to management decisions (such as inventory control, facility location, choice of transport mode and routeing of deliveries) and also to policy decisions designed to contain the environmental and congestion impacts of freight transport operations. In the second element, participants are introduced to the analytical underpinnings of those decisions. Mathematical skills are not required, but quantitative examples are included, covering inventory control, lorry routeing and scheduling, depot location and total distribution costs.

Outline programme

• Mode choice

• Vehicle routeing and scheduling

• Depot numbers and locations

• Stock control

• Equipment and warehousing

• Distribution systems in practice

• Social costs of freight transport

The course benefits from the Institute’s unique team of staff involved in major initiatives, most notably the ‘Green Logistics’ consortium of university and industry research partners (www.greenlogistics.org)

The course also provides the option, with additional attendance, of accruing credits towards a Masters' degree in Transport Planning. 

The course will be held in ITS training facilities at the University of Leeds. The course fee includes learning materials, lunch and refreshments during the course, but not overnight accommodation (details of local hotels are available on request). The course is also available as bespoke or in-company training on a date and at a location chosen by the client organisation.