04. November 2024, 10:09 o'Clock
Article: Fast and reliable: Rail-Shuttle for BASF
Chemicals group continues to rely on successful shuttle concept between Ludwigshafen and Schwarzheide.
DB Cargo has been transporting chemical products for the Ludwigshafen-based chemicals group BASF throughout Germany and Europe for many years. Two years ago, an innovative shuttle concept was introduced and successfully established to connect two plant sites. BASF has extended this contract for a further two years.
Sophisticated logistics concept for the chemical industry
The concept involves transports between two of the largest European BASF sites, Ludwigshafen in Rhineland-Palatinate and Schwarzheide in Brandenburg. What may sound like an ordinary transport operation between A and B at first glance reveals a sophisticated logistics concept on closer inspection: “We combine BASF's large, but not quite block train-capable transport volume with additional single wagonloads and can therefore still offer our customer the desired block train quality,” explains Charlotte Hieronimi, Senior Account Manager at DB Cargo BTT. And this is how the rail shuttle concept works in detail:
At the Ludwigshafen plant site, various chemical goods are loaded into tank wagons or special containers from BASF and assembled into a block train directly at the plant's own siding. The sequence and sorting of the wagons is already taken into account there, as not all wagons are transported to Schwarzheide. By forming the train directly at the plant, there is no need for further shunting services at the nearest marshalling yard, which enables fast and reliable transit times – an important advantage of this shuttle.
The rail shuttle concept between Ludwigshafen and Schwarzheide connects two important BASF production sites.
On the way to Schwarzheide, the train stops at the Halle marshalling yard, where wagons for BASF customers from the region are uncoupled and the main load can continue quickly towards Schwarzheide. Once it arrives at its destination, the remaining wagons are uncoupled, the locomotive turns and takes wagons for Ludwigshafen back with it. On the return journey, there is another stopover in the greater Halle area, where further shipments – this time also industry and customer-independent – are added and transported to Mannheim before the "main train" returns to the BASF plant in Ludwigshafen.
The shuttle services between Ludwigshafen and Schwarzheide have been running since 2022 and transport around 270,000 tonnes of chemical goods for BASF every year. This figure is likely to rise even further in next two years, as since April 2024, six freight trains have been travelling to Schwarzheide every week instead of the previous five – the latest shuttle concept is a full success.
Single wagonload transport in block train quality
With the rail shuttle, a well thought-out concept has been realised in which specific details are optimally interlinked. The advantages speak for themselves:
Rapid start
By forming the train at the plant, the wagons start towards their destination without any further detours and the journey time of the train is reduced immensely.
Positive synergies
The inclusion of additional wagons for BASF's customers enables the bundling into a fast block train in the direction of Halle. Synergy effects are also created on the return journey by taking along freight wagons from other industries in eastern Germany, which are then uncoupled in Mannheim for further distribution to the south-west and transported onwards. Free capacity is thus optimally utilised and ensures more goods are transported by rail.
Short transport time
The block train transport on the main line in both directions significantly optimises transport times and reduces the risk of longer downtimes. Trains travelling in the Schwarzheide direction only take around twelve hours, while those travelling in the Ludwigshafen direction take around seventeen hours.
Schedulable and transparent
The entire transport process is also managed via the industry-specific product: DBchem hub express. This includes round-the-clock monitoring by the control tower and BASF is immediately and proactively informed of any deviations from delivery dates. Further key components of the logistics solutions are transport schedules that are closely coordinated with the customer and a constant monitoring of the transports themselves. In addition to its own reporting system, BASF can also track the status of the wagons at any time via link2rail.
The Halle marshalling yard is served by the rail shuttle on the outward and return journey.
Partnership with a future
DB Cargo and BASF are working hand in hand to further develop the successful shuttle concept in the future. The focus here is on the continuous optimisation of logistics processes. "Our aim is to strengthen the partnership and develop innovative solutions for chemical transports," says Charlotte Hieronimi. Strong benchmarks have already been set with the rail shuttle.
Go
