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30
Dec
Largest Memphis intermodal firm readies for Collierville move
With a 10-year tax break in hand, the largest intermodal firm in the area is moving forward with its plans to move from Memphis to Collierville.
As the Memphis Business Journal reported in November, IMC Cos. is planning to build a 75,000-square-foot headquarters office in Collierville’s Schilling Farms that it intends to occupy by summer 2021.
On Dec. 9, Collierville’s board of mayor and aldermen approved the company for a 10-year PILOT (payment-in-lieu-of-taxes), which had been approved by Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris on Nov. 18. (more…)
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20
Dec
Intermodal Trucking Sees 2020 As Year Of Tough Laws, Cost Increases
Intermodal and drayage carriers are winding down a year that for many meant only modest growth in container trucking. On the international side, the National Retail Federation projected another record year for U.S. container imports, but it would amount to only a 1% increase in volumes over 2018. Domestic rail containers, meanwhile, saw a steeper drop of 4% from 2018.
As the industry looks toward 2020, there is hope among intermodal executives that container volumes will keep growing, albeit much of the growth may be in certain regions and for specific goods. Likewise, intermodal carriers want to see more done on the maritime link in the supply chain to improve efficiency. For its own part, container trucking will have to wrestle with a slew of regulations and cost increases that will require them to be more efficient as well.
Here are some views on how 2020 will shake out for intermodal.
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18
Dec
BNSF’s Chicago intermodal depot regains flow after operational shift
Truck turn times have returned to normal in BNSF Railway’s Lot 16 outside of Chicago following the railroad’s transferring control of the lot in November to a private company with several locations in the market.
The lot is a depot where drivers return empty ocean containers after beneficial cargo owners (BCOs) unload the contents. It does not handle domestic containers. Although it’s not a haul that many consider, delays in returning an ocean container can lead to detention penalties and drivers completing fewer jobs per day. That eventually causes other BCOs to be billed for terminal demurrage — also called rail storage fees.
The solution was to bring in DNJ Intermodal Services to take over operations in Lot 16; the company runs chassis and container depots elsewhere in Chicago.
BNSF announced in January 2019 that empty ocean containers had to be returned to Lot 16 rather than Logistics Park Chicago (LPC), its main terminal in Elwood, Illinois. Problems started immediately, with lines extending onto adjacent streets. Drayage providers told JOC.com drivers would sometimes wait for an hour only to discover the lot wouldn’t accept the empty. Ocean carriers are supposed to remove boxes in a timely fashion, but sometimes they exceed their storage cap so the terminal refuses to take more. (more…)
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11
Dec
Container Tracking Innovations: 3PL Adoptions and Implementations
One of the challenges for North America’s intermodal industry over the years is the ability to accurately track and report a container’s status while it is in transit.
And while that has traditionally left third-party logistics companies at a disadvantage compared with other modes of transport that utilize GPS-enabled cargo and equipment-tracking sensors, intermodal has taken steps in recent years to catch up.
3PLs, in particular, have been able to greatly improve their operations and shipment visibility thanks in part to cloud-based software and database platforms, as well as the emergence of web-enabled devices that collect, send and act on data they acquire from their surrounding environments using embedded sensors, processors and communication hardware, technology commonly know as the Internet of Things, or loT.
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05
Nov
USA: truckload carrier expands its intermodal footprint
The American intermodal logistics provider IMC has acquired Ohio-based TRANSInternational Systems. The family-run intermodal transportation company has nine intermodal freight locations across the USA, including cities like Chicago, Atlanta, Cleveland, and Memphis. IMC will merge TRANSInternational’s operations into several of […]
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31
Oct
IMC Companies buys intermodal company, expands national footprint
IMC Companies has acquired TRANSInternational System, an intermodal company based in Worthington, Ohio, that operates intermodal freight terminals in nine U.S. cities, including Chicago, Atlanta, Cleveland and Memphis.
“I am impressed with TRANSInternational’s leadership, history, services, values and team members,” Mark H. George, chairman of Memphis-based IMC Companies, said in a release. “I look forward to welcoming their team into our family of brands.”
IMC will be merging TRANSInternational System’s operations into its companies Ohio Intermodal Services, Intermodal Cartage Company, DNJ Intermodal Services and Atlantic Intermodal Services. (more…)
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28
Oct
VP of “Logistics Powerhouse” Snaps Up HR Impact Award
Tera Jackson – Winner
Vice president of human resources, IMC Cos.
A logistics powerhouse that specializes in marine drayage, IMC is focused on creating efficient supply chains. Tera Jackson plays a critical role in the company’s success, overseeing organizational development, recruitment and staffing, employment law, performance management, employee relations, and compensation/benefits. (more…)
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09
Oct
IMC Companies Selected Top 100 Trucker
Inbound Logistics named IMC Companies as a top 100 trucking company in the country. The award acknowledges IMC Companies’ recent growth and expansion into every major port and rail in the United States. The publication’s editors selected this year’s list […]
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23
Sep
No easy fix for chassis conundrum: speakers
Issues involving chassis interoperability, shortages, and dislocation continue to hamper productivity at US ports and inland rail ramps, and there is no single solution on the horizon that will make those problems go away, speakers at the Intermodal Association of North America (IANA) conference in Long Beach said this week.
In fact, with each stakeholder in the supply chain — ocean carrier, trucker, railroad, and intermodal equipment provider (IEP) — doing what best serves their own interests, the industry may eventually be forced into the unwanted condition where it has to choose between regulation and free markets before a solution is found, the speakers said.
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13
Sep
IMC COMPANIES TO LAUNCH NEW WEST COAST COMPANY: PACIFIC DRAYAGE SERVICES
IMC Companies, a Memphis-based leader in nationwide intermodal logistics, recently added another company to its family of brands. On August 19th, IMC Companies launched Pacific Drayage Services (PDS) to provide drayage and warehousing services to customers in the Seattle and Tacoma markets. The PDS fleet is made up entirely of company-owned trucks and employee drivers. IMC Companies has ordered 150 new company trucks to bolster their presence on the West Coast. The new fleet of Mack trucks was a $20 million capital expense.
“We’re committed to expanding our presence on the West Coast,” said Mark H. George, Chairman of IMC Companies. “This strategic growth means that we are able to serve our valued customers via every major rail and port facility in the United States.” (more…)
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