SMARTER logistics, based on supply chain collaboration, low-carbon transport options and PortCentric solutions, were top of the agenda at last month's Multimodal exhibition and conference, held in Birmingham.

And appropriately, visitors found the Haven Gateway stand at the very centre of the conference hall at the NEC – where no fewer than 11 major companies and organisations from our subregion were represented, including Hutchison Ports (UK), which owns and operates Felixstowe and Harwich International ports.

This was a fantastic opportunity to get together, raise our profile once again, and ‘bang the drum’ for the Haven Gateway, which is the UK’s most important port cluster and itself at the centre of so many of these ‘smart logistics’ networks. It’s also a great example of what can be achieved when public and private sector work together.

The Port of Felixstowe has long been at the forefront of the PortCentric logistics concept, which removes the need to truck laden containers many miles inland for unpacking, and then truck empty containers back to the port. ‘PortCentric’ keeps the container at the port, where the contents can be unpacked, stored, repacked, labelled, shrink-wrapped, etc., before onward distribution to regional distribution centres and often direct to specific stores.

Multimodal offered us a very broad audience of shippers, transport companies and logistics suppliers, all keen to hear about the progress of the Felixstowe South Terminal is it reaches the final stages of construction. With nine of the yard cranes already delivered and the first three of the world’s largest ship-to-shore cranes due to arrive very shortly, the port is poised to enter a new phase, ensuring it can service the new generation of mega container vessels.

Not surprisingly, PortCentric logistics also featured strongly at the Multimodal seminars which accompanied the exhibition, where the theme was on ‘collaborative supply chains’. Other speakers looked at the challenges and complexities of increasing the use of rail, inland waterways and coastal shipping for moving cargoes. What became clear was that the will is there to make those changes, for the benefit of us all. Despite the recession, there is still a real drive to create ‘green’ distribution solutions, often as a direct result of consumer pressure on retail chains.

Members of the EU Dryport project, of which the Haven Gateway is a partner, attended Multimodal and took the opportunity to hold their own parallel workshop looking at modal shift. One of the key messages to come out of this workshop was that supply chains can – and must – tick the three ‘E’ boxes, meeting the requirements of Environment, Economy and Efficiency.

The perception that ‘green’ must mean more expensive is rapidly being dismissed – after all, better planning can create more efficiency and reduce road miles; that reduces fuel consumption and carbon emissions; and less fuel means less cost. With oil prices likely to rise steadily and significantly in the short and longer term, that’s a smart choice.

For us in the Haven Gateway, there are obvious opportunities to build on the strengths of our ports. Felixstowe handles nearly 40% of all containers coming into the UK, and the Haven Gateway offers a wealth of experience, facilities and skills in the ports, shipping, transport, logistics and related sectors. We must look for all opportunities to ‘add value’ to the contents and transportation of those containers!