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Will shipping our product by rail be a more reliable mode than trucking in a time like this? (Anthony Menzies)

Published August 4, 2020by Anthony Menzies - Head of Strategy & Logistics Services, Aberdeen Carolina & Western Railwayin Ask The Experts Q&A

My company is facing an unusual amount of supply chain disruption because of the sudden lack of demand for our product. Will shipping our product by rail be a more reliable mode than trucking in a time like this?

Rail can be more reliable than long-haul trucking, specifically if you have the ability to stockpile product at a transload facility or store your product within a railcar as a "mobile warehouse."

Having your railcars or product near the end destination allows you to truck it for the last mile or re-deploy the railcar when your demand picks back up.

We have a few customers in the plastics, aggregate, stone, and agribusiness who practice deploying inventory as close to the destination as possible.