BCG+货运铁路的数字未来

FreightRail’sDigitaltheBendJanuary2023ByDavidSchaar,AndreyTimofeev,PallaviKansal,LukeH.Young,andGrantZellerasBOSTONCONSULTINGGROUPXTRINITYRAIL39DrtngarketsharematdailFreightRailIsLosingMarketShare,DespiteExhibit1-InFreightTransport,RailIsLosingSharetoTruckingStonmilesoflandfreightcarried201220132014201520162017201820192020TruckRail(coalshipments)Rail(excludingcoalshipments)Sources:USBureauofTransportationStatistics;USEnergyInformationAdministration.4FREIGHTRAIL’SDIGITALFUTUREISJUSTAROUNDTHEBENDThistrendunderscoresamorebasicproblem:manyship-persviewrailassimplytoohardtousecomparedwithtrucking.Akeyadvantageoftrucktransportistheabilitytotingtheneedtocoordinatefirst-andlast-milehandoffs.ThetruckingindustryhasincreasedthisadvantagebyadoptinguntetheredGPStrackingtechnologyfortrailersandcontainers,givingshippersreal-timevisibilityintothelocationofshipments.Toclosetheperformancegapandpromotevolumegrowth,therailindustrywillneedtorelievepainpointsexperiencedbyparticipantsacrossthevaluechain.(SeeExhibit2.)Shippers.Inanageofnonstop,digitallyenabledintercon-nectedness,railtransportoftenremainsananalogexperi-enceforshippers.Supplychainmanagersmayhavelimit-ed,ifany,visibilityofthegeographiclocationoftheirmaterials.Theproblemlies,tosomeextent,withtheshort-comingsoftheAutomaticEquipmentIdentification(AEI)trackinginfrastructureusedbyNorthAmericanrailroads.ThereisconsiderablevariationinthespacingofAEIread-ersacrosslinesandregions.Insomeareas,thedistancebetweenreadersis50milesorless,whileinotherstheyarehundredsofmilesapart.Moreover,thesystemdoesnotprovidereal-timelocationstatus—whenrailcarspassareader,severalhourselapsebeforeupdatesappearinthesystem.Someareaslacktrackinginfrastructurealtogether.Atinterchangepoints,particularlywhencargoismovingfrommainlinestoshortlines,shipperstypicallylosetheabilitytotracklocation.Thechallengesarisingfromantiquatedtechnologyandfragmenteddatasourcesmeanthatsupplychainmanag-ersmustrelyonestimatedtimesofarrival(ETAs)basedondatathatishours,orperhapsdays,old.Thismakesithardforsupplychainmanagerstooptimallycoordinatelast-milelogistics,whichinturnunderminesothereffortstoachieveoperationalefficiency—suchasschedulingproduc-tionshiftsaccordingtowhenincomingrawmaterialsareexpectedtoarrive.RailroadsandTerminalOperators.Railyardsandter-minalsarechokepointsintherailnetworkbecausemanag-erslackreal-timevisibilityoftheirinboundpipeline.Thispreventsthemfromusingadvancedplanningtogainefficiency.Moreover,modaltransitionsareinherentlyunwieldytomanage—myriadshipmentsarrivefrommulti-pledirectionsandmightbeoutboundviaatruck,ship,oranothertrain.Thesheercomplexitydrivesasignificantgapinreliability.Theplannedmovementsofrailcarsmightbedelayedoreventuallypostponed,leavingthemunpro-edintheyardovernightorperhapsfordaysdependingonseveralfactorsincludingfrequencyofservice.Ship-persknowthatrailcarswiththeirfreightareheadingtowardsthem,butareunclearonhowmanywillarriveandonwhatday.Exhibit2-CurrentPainPointsAcrosstheRailValueChainShippers•Unexpecteddelays•Lackofaccuratetracking•UnreliableETAs•Uncertainpayloadconditions•Inaccuratedwell-timereporting•Slowrailcarusecycles•InabilitytosynchronizethesupplychainRailroadsandterminals•Lackofreal-timevisibilitytoinboundpipelineatloadingandunloadingpoints•Slowhandoffs•Congestedrailyardsandtracks•HighcostoftracksideinfrastructureRailcarowners•Delayedmaintenanceandsafety-issue•Reactivefleetmanagement•Lackoftargetedmaintenance•Extendedcar-cycletimesandslackcapacityduetouncertaintyanddelaysSource:BCGresearch.Note:ETAs=estimatedtimesofarrival.BOSTONCONSULTINGGROUPXTRINITYRAIL5rOwnersRailcarownerswhethershippersincestehealth.TheOpportunities:TransparencyandOptimizationatses6FREIGHTRAIL’SDIGITALFUTUREISJUSTAROUNDTHEBEND•Assuranceofrequiredpayloadconditionsthroughoutprocessing•Improvedplanning(forexample,inboundqueue)•Fasterhandoffs••Assuranceofrequiredpayloadconditionsthroughoutprocessing•Improvedplanning(forexample,inboundqueue)•Fasterhandoffs•ReducedcongestionCarriers,operators•Notificationofanyincorrectorpotentiallydangerousconditions(forexample,handbrakeon)•Improvedfleetmanagementandplanning•LessslackcapacityrequiredRailcarBroadersocietyLocationConditionLocationCondition•Assuranceofrequiredpayloadconditions(forexample,refrigeration)••Assuranceofrequiredpayloadconditions(forexample,refrigeration)•Capacityutilizationdata•ImprovedETAs•Greaterpredictability•PeaceofmindShippers,forwarders•Greaterreliability•Improvedfailureprediction•Reducedneedfortracksideinfrastructure•Moreefficientmaintenance•Targetedmaintenance•Improvedfailureprediction•HigherutilizationownersGreenerfreightmix•Greenerfreightmix•Breakingtraditionaltradeoffsthatfavortrucktransport•Growingrail’sshareoffreighttransport•Constantmonitoringofvolatileordangerouspayloads•PredictivemaintenancepreventsequipmentfailuresthatcouldcausederailmentsSource:BCGresearch.Note:ETAs=estimatedtimesofarrival.Forrailroadsandoperatorsofrailyards,terminals,ports,andothermodalhandoffpoints,widespreadadoptionoftelematicswillallowforadvancedvisibilityoftheinboundpipelineaswellaslivein-yardlocationtracking.OperatorscanapplythisvisibilitytooptimizeorevenautomatepipelineplanningandreceiveAI-generatedrecommenda-tionsforsequentialcarmovements.Digitaltwins—digitalvisualizationsofhighlycomplexoperations—willfacilitatetheseefforts.Railcarownerswillgainafarmoreaccurateandup-to-dateviewoftheirfleet.Theycanapplythisvisibilitytoimprovefleetmanagementand,intime,maybeabletoreducetheneedforslackcapacity.Condition.Othertelematicshardwarewilltransmitdataregardingtheconditionofarailcartostakeholders.Thiscanassureashipperthatitspayloadhasnotbeenac-cessedviaanopenhatchbyunauthorizedparties,andthatitisbeingkeptattherequiredtemperatureorpressureifitisrefrigeratedorvolatile.Conditiondatawillenableauto-matedcorrectiveactionsanddispatchingofemergencypersonnel—fire,police,ormedical—asthesituationwar-rants.Asmoresensorsbecomeavailabletoprovidedatafromadditionalsources,companieswillundertakeevenmorevaluableoptimizationefforts,suchasimprovingcarcapacityutilization.Health.Usingtelematicstoreportonrailcarhealthisparticularlyvaluabletorailcarowners,whocurrentlymayonlybeabletoperformoccasionaldetailedchecksontheirequipment.Sensorswillprovidereal-timevisibilityofdam-agedparts.Railcarownerswillapplyconditiondatatoautomaticallyschedulemaintenance,includingprioritiza-tionbasedonurgency.Theywillusemachinelearningtosensepossiblefailuresbeforetheyhappen.Thisenablesfarmoreefficient,targeted,andpredictivemaintenancewhileimprovingreliabilityanddramaticallyreducingmaintenancecosts.ClassIrailroadsalsobenefit,astheywillnolongerneedtomaintaintracksideinfrastructureforsensingmaintenanceissuesandwillgainmoredetailedvisibility.BOSTONCONSULTINGGROUPXTRINITYRAIL7•Track-levellocationprecision•Proximitytootherobjects•Refrigerator-carhealthandfuellevel•Linerhealth•Loadshiftingorsloshing••Track-levellocationprecision•Proximitytootherobjects•Refrigerator-carhealthandfuellevel•Linerhealth•Loadshiftingorsloshing•Weightofcargo•Carcapacitylevel•Wheelsandbearings:temperature•Brakes:reservoir,line,andhosepressure•Stability:hunting,pitch,yaw,andslackNearterm•LocationIn-cartemperature,moisture,pressure,andlight•RailcarsensorsConditionDoor/hatchopenorclosedCouplers:wear,forcesbetweencars,andreleaseHealth•LongertermToday,railcarscanbeequippedwithtelematicsdevicesthatprovidedataonlocation,impactdetection,andexter-naltemperature.Inboththenearandlongerterm,manyotherdevices,someofwhichareinthepilotingstage,willbecomeavailable,offeringunprecedentedreal-timevisibili-tyandtransparencytoshippers’supplychainsandrailcarowners’assets.CurrentandFutureTelematicDatafromRailcarSensorsRealReal-timelocation•Impactdetected•Externaltemperature•Caremptyorloaded••HandbrakeonoroffSources:RailPulse;BCGresearch.8FREIGHTRAIL’SDIGITALFUTUREISJUSTAROUNDTHEBENDTheTheKeyEnablers:ASharedDataEcosystempplicationLayeryataplatformASecure,Cross-CompatibleEcosystemTheindustryneedstocreateasecure,cross-compatibleecosystemtopreventtheproliferationofdifferentstan-dardsthatwouldhamperthedigitizationofrailandulti-matelyharmtheindustry.TheRailPulsecoalitionofrailcarowners(includinglessors,shippersowningtheirownfleets,andClassIandshort-linerailroads)seekstoprovidethistelematics—includinghardware,compatibility,andotherspecifications—andtoidentifytechnologyvendors.Itwillalsoprovideinfrastructuretocollect,harmonize,aggregate,andstorerailcardata.rRailPulseexistsornot.WithoutRailPulse,itwillcomein members.”telematics.turewillallowRailPulsetotaandshippers.suBOSTONCONSULTINGGROUPXTRINITYRAIL9AATransformativeApplicationLayerephesofticsonsthatleveragerealtimeendtoendlocationandrelatedinformationarecomingtomarket.WespokewithshippersusingtheTrinsightlogisticsplatform,aplatformlaunchedbyTrinityRailthatcombinestraditionalindustrylocationinformationwithnewlyavailablead-vanceddatasets.Thesediscussionsprovideinsightsintothetransformativepotentialofsuchapplications,ofwhichTrinsightwillbejustoneofmanyavailabletoshippers.rlAdoptiondussislyneshipttapremiumpricexndotnsCollaborationAmongIndustryParticipants.Thenew10FREIGHTRAIL’SDIGITALFUTUREISJUSTAROUNDTHEBENDyyanFleetManagementDashboardtheionSensorsServiceETADashboardsDataConsolidationPlatformrsatesTemperatureSensorsBOSTONCONSULTINGGROUPXTRINITYRAIL11ononTheMosaicCompanyanddmetrics.”eeelltimens“Digitalizationwithintherailsectorisstillinitsinfancy,”hesays.WCSCisamongtheearlyadopters.Ithaspart-neredwithTrinityRailtostandupperformancedashboardsthatindustryconstituentscanapplytomakeinformedsupplychaindecisionsandidentifyareasofopportunity.gys tryconstituentsarepressingforserviceimprovements.eatersenseofurgencyacrosstheboardtobroadlyrolloutthebenefitsoftelematicsfor shippers.”12FREIGHTRAIL’SDIGITALFUTUREISJUSTAROUNDTHEBENDIncreasingIncreasingadoptionBydevelopingsharedstandardsandservingasaclearing-housefordataandpermissions,RailPulseisprovidingauniversal“plug-and-play”architectureforrailusersandvendors.Additionally,itisutilizinganinitialsetofpilots,vendorvetting,andbulkpurchasingtojumpstarttheuseofsensorswhilekeepingcostslowandpromotingsuppliercompetition.Earlytrialsandproof-of-conceptpilotsaredemonstratingthereturnoninvestmentintelematicsandlayingthegroundworkforwideradoption,flatterlearningcurves,andgreaterdemandfromshippers.Asadoptionincreases,companieswillcapturebenefitsthatrequirecriticalmass—suchasimprovingthemanagementofrailcarfleetsorpoolsoreliminatingtheburdenofhavingtracksidemaintenanceinfrastructure—allowingthemtocreateadditionalvalue.(SeeExhibit4.)Theresultwillbeavirtuouscycle.Continuedadoptionbyuserswiththegreatestneedandsophisticationwillin-creaseincentivesfortechnologyproviderstooffertheapplicationlayerthattransformsdataintoinsightsforoptimizingoperations.Inturn,asgreaterscaleincreasesthevalueofbenefits,otherindustryparticipantswillbemotivatedtoinvestindigitization.AcceleratingAdoptionAcrosstheValueChainBypreparingforthisdigitalrevolution,shippersandotherrailindustrystakeholderscanaccelerateadoptionandenhancethevaluecreated.Shippers.Currentrailcustomersshouldcontinuetopressrailroadstogivethembettervisibilityandinsights.Thiscouldinclude,forexample,accesstoRailPulseequipmentandthenecessaryanalyticsplatforms.Shippersnotcur-rentlyusingrailtransportshouldreconsiderusingrailtocapturethebenefitsofsafety,efficiency,andsustainabilityasenhancedbytelematics.Exhibit4-TheStagesofTelematicsAdoptionyears:fullsystemRailcarDiscretesitesToday:individualcarsDiscretefleetsExamples•Visibilitytoshippersofkeyshipments•Assuranceofconditions•MaintenancedataforspecificcarsSource:BCGresearch.•Fullfleetmanagement(forandslackcapacity)•Integrationwitherinsystemsintelligentmaintenanceregimesforfleetrstools•PredictivemaintenanceforOnsitesafetyandsecuritymaintenanceorrailcarm