23-25 March 2011
Clarion Congress Hotel Prague****
Czech Republic
Combined and particularly container transport belong to modern, progressive, dynamic and prospective spheres. Carriers, forwarders as well as customers are increasingly aware of its fundamental benefits resulting from a combination of the most advantageous features peculiar to each kind of transport: despite the distance involved, the backbone railway (or water) transport provides highly economic and reliable haulage independent of shipping congestions or AETR agreements as for the drivers’ working hours; on the other hand, road transport ensures very flexible place and time as regard the final destination that is not so addicted to the existence of any railway or water infrastructure (factory siding, port or other site for unloading). Furthermore, the single, common and standardized transport unit facilitates the handling of merchandise (reloading as well as unloading) and, at the same time, it minimizes the risk of damage.
 
However, the “operating area” for ISO containers is not represented only by the European continent where it must still struggle for its position beside the transportation operated purely by road. The basic domain – causing the steepest development of container transport systems – is namely the world maritime transport, generally the intercontinental freight transportation. Especially the transport container standardization at the turn of the 1960s and 1970s marked a stormy expansion of this transporting branch.

Nowadays, approximately 18 million containers move round the world undertaking together more than 200 million routes annually; containers on large container ships convey about 90% of the world freight exchange (except for mass substrates) whereas 26% of the loaded containers start from China as one of the most important world exporters.

Within several recent years, also intercontinental transports from Asia to Europe by railway are becoming increasingly popular and the number of successful projects centred on container trains can be already counted in tens. The explicit benefit is mainly given by shortening the transport time from 4–5 weeks to 16–18 days as well as higher safety – some risks are eliminated, e.g. loss of containers during maritime accidents or pirate attacks on ships. For these reasons, the International Rail Freight Conference is being held again this March already for the third time. Within four thematic sections, it will introduce (1) general and legislative conditions for intercontinental freight transport, (2) European TAF TSI (Technical Specifications of Interoperability on Telematic Applications for Freight) standards and technical issues connected with combined transportation, (3) control and information technologies and (4) specific examples of a successful “on-railway-business”. The conference promoter is the company JERID, a part of the OLTIS Group, a known supplier of information systems for transportation and logistics. Participation in this conference provides very convenient presentation opportunities for every important player dealing with European railway and combined transports.
More information on the conference program as well as partnership options is available on the following web address http://www.RailConference.com/.