CONCOR (North West Region) and its Supply Chain Management

Brief about CONCOR:

Container Corporation of India or CONCOR as it is shortly known is the life line of country’s EXIM trade, providing containerized freight transportation by rail in India. CONCOR’s core business is characterized by three distinct activities (1) As a carrier (2) CFS Operator (3) ICD operator. CONCOR has a large infrastructure consisting of 57 terminals in Indian sub-continent - built ahead of demand and growth in the EXIM & port sector. Though more than 90% of its inland transport service is by rail, road services are also provided by CONCOR according to market demand.

CONCOR North West Region (NWR):

CONCOR North western Region was set up in 2001 with its head quarters at Ahmedabad catering primarily to the industrially rich hinterland of the state of Gujarat. The region has led the development of container traffic movement to and from the new ports like Pipavav and Mundra in Gujarat. CONCOR NWR is now planning to link Kandla Port’s container Terminal with hinterland ICDs. The Region has expanded its services to link the ports and the hinterland and has grown by 27% in the year 2010-11 as compared to previous year 2009-10. During the year 2010-11 NWR handled 3.72 lakh TEUs in the EXIM sector & 6,600 TEUs in Domestic stream.

Regions’ Terminal Network & Services:

CONCOR NWR has following six strategically located terminal networks that serve the hinterland.

• Inland Container Depot (ICD) Khodiyar
• Rail Container Terminal (RCT) & Container Freight Station (CFS) Chhani at Vadodara,
• ICD Ankleshwar & CCT Ankleshwar
• Combined Container Terminal (CCT) Gandhidham
• Domestic Container Terminal (DCT) Sabarmati
• Rail Operations at Mundra and Rail Operations at Pipavav ports - for evacuation of containers from port to the hinterland ICDs and vice versa.

A host of services is provided by CONCOR NWR at these Terminal networks. NWR provides a spectrum of facilities in terms of warehousing, container parking, repair facilities and office & user’s complex within the Terminal. Value to the supply chain is added by offering services such as transit warehousing for exports and import cargo,  bonded warehousing, which enables importers to store cargo and ask for partial release with differed duty payment, Less than containers loads (LCL) at nominated hubs, and air cargo clearance using bonded trucking.

On the domestic front CONCOR NWR has chalked out total logistics service plans, with special emphasis on warehousing, storage, repacking etc. Examples include models like services provided to IOCL, AIA Engineering & Lok Prakashan in Ahmedabad and General Motors at Vadodara.

Domestic containers from CONCOR’s fleet of 12,812 owned & leased ISO compliant domestic 20’, 22’ boxes and tank containers are also supplied to facilitate the carriage of all types of cargo.

NWR Terminals are equipped with state-of-the-art cargo container handling equipments like loaded and empty handling reach stackers and modern cargo and container handling equipments. With a view to maintain quality of service and sustainability, seven state-of-the-art reach stackers owned by CONCOR have been positioned at various NWR terminals with a plan to position a few more in other NWR Terminals.

State-of-the-art high speed container flats BLC & BLL wagons, capable of running at high speeds up to 100 kmph have been progressively introduced on major container circuits for container evacuation from the ports like Mundra & Pipavav, JNPT, NSICT, GTIL to the ICDs and vice versa resulting in reduced transit times.

Importance of Supply Chain Management:

Organizations increasingly find that they must rely on effective supply chains, or networks, to compete in the global market and networked economy. By outsourcing their activities the manufactures can concentrate on their core business and specialize in it. During the past decades, globalization, outsourcing and information technology have enabled many organizations to successfully, operate solid collaborative supply networks in which each specialized business partner focuses on only a few key strategic activities.

Supply chain management is a cross-function approach including managing the movement of raw materials into an organization, certain aspects of the internal processing of materials into finished goods, and the movement of finished goods out of the organization towards the end-consumer. As organizations strive to focus on core competencies and become more flexible, they reduce their ownership of raw materials/finished goods sources and distribution channels. These functions are increasingly being outsourced to other entities that can perform the activities better or more cost effectively. The effect is to increase the number of organizations involved in satisfying customer demand, while reducing management control of daily logistics operations. The purpose of supply chain management is to improve trust and collaboration among supply chain partners.

Supply Chain Management & CONCOR NWR:

CONCOR NWR has its ICDs, CFSs, Combined Rail Terminals at strategic locations in the State of Gujarat for serving the above purpose of organizations. These Terminals are brands by themselves – as they provide complete range of services at one location.  

Hence for a supplier or a consignee wanting to move its cargo; CONCOR NWR’s customs bonded ICDs/CFSs are dry ports in the hinterland and serve the purpose of bringing all port facilities, including customs clearance to the customer’s doorstep.

CONCOR NWR has strategic partnership with service providers which enable to and fro movement of cargo on the supply chain circuit. It not only has a solid Terminal network with 20 years experience in the logistics service and excellent human resources but is also equipped with robust IT and EDI network – which is leveraged for the Customer’s benefit. Moreover, transparent Public Tariff benefits the customer in taking important logistics decision.

CONCOR NWR - At the Tactical level:

Activities like transport contracting, scheduling, and planning process are made for the benefit of the customers including transportation strategy, including frequency, routes etc. are carried out by the company. CONCOR NWR also benchmarks all its operations services to provide better services in time focusing on customer demand and habits.

Based on this information the customer also aligns his production and first mile transportation to reach the ICD, CFSs in time and benefits from scheduling and planning of CONCOR NWR Terminals. This assures on-time deliveries to the Customers and creates delightful customers. All this has increased the scope of more business opportunities and generation of more business for the customers and powers the growth machine.

CONCOR NWR - At the Operational level:

The most important level of the fragmented supply chain process is best planning and implementation that gives apparent and visible results. This is achieved by CONCOR NWR with their various operational level strategies.

Daily position and Terminal level planning of all activities are undertaken to have a smooth supply chain. More importantly, all the planning and scheduling of transport and rail movement for supply chain is adhered to.

Demand planning and forecasting, coordinating the demand forecast of all customers and sharing the forecast with all suppliers is also carried out at CONCOR NWR. Planning includes collaboration with all suppliers, vendors & service partners/Terminal Operators for business process alignment.

Inbound and Outbound rail operations including road transportation is also carried out on logistics front. Various activities like warehousing and inventory management of containers for customers, placement and removals & cargo handling are also managed by CONCOR. Moreover, sequencing job orders are supervised in a bid to check and balance to see operations are going as planned.

Special features of CONCOR NWR services:

A vital CONCOR feature is the provision of single window facility for coordinating with all the different agencies and services involved in the containerized cargo, trade-customs, gateway ports railways, road haulers, consolidators, forwarders, customs house agents, shipping lines etc. To achieve a high degree of customization, packages designed to provide the most cost effective combination of road and rail providing services individually tailored to customer specifications is provided by CONCOR NWR.

Some of the practices it adopts to achieve these goals are as follows:-
      a. Online information and container tracking
      b. Container repair and cleaning
      c. Cargo lashing/chocking facility
      d. Fumigation of cargo/containers
      e. Supply chain management
      f. Door delivery /pickup of containerized cargo
      g. Container /cargo survey
      h. Pre-deposit account
      i. Round the clock security at terminals
      j. Facilitation of customs clearance
      k. Provisions of reefer facilities

What is CONCOR now focusing on:

Logistics in India is highly fragmented – CONCOR too is limited to a part of the total logistics and supply chain management. To offer end to end logistics solution - CONCOR has expanded services to other modes of transport like shipping, road transport, air cargo etc on its own or through strategic alliance. Keeping in view the growing demand for domestic cargo movement in containers, CONCOR has added 3,000 new containers to its existing fleet of 12,800 domestic containers.

CONCOR also uses its Terminal like a hub and spoke movement that enables a single customer to move cargo to multiple locations at a time, with CONCOR taking care of the interim distribution and redistribution and requirements. Though faced with competition, CONCOR will maintain its dominant position in pan India network of strong infrastructure coupled with market intelligence.

CONCOR is also open to the idea of PPP and alliance in strategic locations & companies. CONCOR regularly makes efforts to improve business practices so as to provide improved quality of customer services. The company is also planning to go global by offering total logistics services and to take on the challenges from the private players.

Brief CONCOR Profiles:

• ICD Khodiyar the leading terminal of NWR has grown year on year; in the year 2009-2010 it handled a throughput of 1.41 lakh TEUs p.a. and 1.47 lakh TEUs in 2010-2011. The ICD links Mumbai & Gujarat ports providing a vast gamut of services as per the EXIM needs of customers.
• DCT-Sabarmati is a major hub for domestic cargo movements; Gujarat is a major source of supply of domestic tiles, detergents, soda ash, foodstuff and other general commodities to the rest of the country.  DCT Khodiyar provides regular train services to Chennai, Patna and Kolkata apart from other domestic locations such as Kanpur, Delhi, Agra, Hyderabad, Belgaum, Bangalore, Salem market, Cochin, Cuttack and Tata Nagar etc. as per the need. In the year 2009-2010 Khodiyar registered outward movement of 4,262 TEUs and 2,842 TEUs in 2010-2011.

• Rail Container Terminal (RCT), Vadodara operates rail EXIM services for JNPT, NSICT, GTIL & (Pipavav on demand) with an average frequency of 4 export & 4 import trains per week. Apart from RCT, imports are de-stuffed and delivered from CFS Chhani. In the year 2009-2010 RCT/CFS Vadodara handled a throughput of 38132 TEUs and 46864 TEUs in 2010-11.

• ICD Ankleshwar provides a regular EXIM rail service which links the manufacturing centers of GIDC like Ankleshwar Panoli, Jhagadia, Bharuch, Palej, Hazira Industrial area and the upcoming SEZ at Dahej to the gateway ports of Mumbai for exports and vice versa for imports.  These GIDC manufacturing centers combined have approx. 2000-2500 industrial units of varying sizes and proportions. Ankleshwar offers weekly scheduled (Thursday) train service which picks up export containers and additional rake as per demand during the week. In the year 2009-2010, ICD-Ankleshwar registered throughput of 3,892 TEUs and 12650 TEUs in the year 2010-11.

• On the domestic front Combined Container Terminal (CCT) Ankleshwar provides regular train services to Kolkata & Delhi apart from containers/rakes on demand for destinations like Hyderabad, Chennai & Kanpur etc. In the year 2010-11 CCT Ankleshwar registered an outward movement of 1,253 TEUs.
  
  
• CCT Gandhidham offers rail operations for movement of domestic containers to Hyderabad, Phillaur, Raipur, Kolkata, Bangalore, Delhi, Dhappar etc. In the year 2010-11 CCT Gandhidham’s outward domestic movement was 2,559 TEUs.
  
  
• CFS Gandhidham also caters to EXIM movement providing transit warehousing and road bridging between Gandhidham and Kandla/Mundra Ports. In the year 2009-2010 it handled a throughput of 12,150 TEUs and 12,714 TEUs in 2010-11.
  
  
• CONCOR rail operations at Pipavav port commenced in November-2003. Rail services connected the Northern hinterland ICDs like TKD, Dadri, Ludhiana, Jodhpur, Jaipur, Rawtha Road, Moradabad, Kanpur etc for the Movement of Import Containers. In the year 2009-2010 CONCOR evacuated 47,042 import TEUs from the port 84,528 TEUs in 2010-11.
  
  
• CONCOR Mundra Port rail operations commenced in August-2003, providing EXIM rail connectivity between the port and the northern hinterland ICDs like TKD, Dadri, Ludhiana, Jodhpur, Jaipur, Rawtha Road, Moradabad, Kanpur etc.  In the year 2009-2010 CONCOR evacuated 50,830 TEUs import TEUs from the port and 65,948 TEUs in 2010-2011.
  
  
  

  Shri Amit Kumar Singh, is an Indian Rail Traffic Services (IRTS) officer from the 1988 Civil Services batch. During his tenure in the Indian Railways, which stretches over two decades, he has served in various capacities in operations and commercial departments at different locations in Western Railway.  His last posting with Railways was as Deputy Chief Operations Manager (Freight), Western Railways.Professionally trained in India & abroad, he is now on deputation to Container Corporation of India serving as Chief General Manager of the North West Region headquartered at Ahmedabad since May 2007.During his tenure so far at NWR he has signed two MOUs with Govt. of Gujarat for development of MMLP at Khodiyar and CFS at Port side locations. The turnover in the year 2007-08 was Rs. 230.32 crores, which has increased to Rs. 429.35 crores in the just ended financial year 2010-11.