California produce train due in Rotterdam

California produce train due in Rotterdam

Eric Anderson -- Times Union -- October 7, 2008

A second weekly produce train has begun service from the West Coast to the Railex USA warehouse here.

The train, consisting of 55 refrigerated box cars, was expected early this week, carrying fresh producefrom southern California, It joins another train that operates weekly from Wallula, Wash. Railex began that service in late October 2006.

The train replaces more than 200 trucks, saving more than 100,000 gallons of diesel fuel per trip, according to Union Pacific Railroad.

Railex opens up a transportation lane that converts long haul to the rail system

“Railex opens up a transportation lane that converts long haul to the rail system,” he said. “We are not reinventing the wheel. The automobile, coal and grain industries use it now and quite successfully.”

Mr. Esposito noted that the facility will have automatic dock levelers that have the ability to move five feet in each direction, allowing Railex to unload 50-foot transload cars. The building will contain six separate temperature-controlled rooms, a 65,000-square-foot packing facility and will have the ability to house 400 racked truckloads, allowing customers to “forward position” their inventories, manage them more efficiently and provide just-in-time deliveries.
“Our facility gives clients the possibility of expanding their distribution radius that would normally have gone LTL,” he said. “For instance, a New York shipper could expand its distribution into New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New England, Montreal or even Maryland, [Washington] D.C. or even the [Pacific] Northwest.”
According to Mr. Esposito, the train, which will be loaded in 36 hours, will depart Washington state on a Thursday and arrive in New York on a Tuesday. It will be unloaded in 24 hours and sent back to Wallula.
Since there are 110 cars in the system, while the first train is on its way back, another train will be departing Washington state to start the process all over again.

Railex LLC’s New York facility right on track

Railex LLC’s New York facility right on track

Joel Gebet -- The Produce News -- July 17, 2006

ROTTERDAM, NY — Imagine a 110-story building and an 18-story building lying on their sides perpendicular to each other. 
This might give some idea of the sheer size of the new produce freight consolidation facility that Railex LLC, a division of ADS Management, is building here.
Construction is right on track on the 200,000-square-foot, state-of-the art transload facility, which Paul Esposito, Railex’s general manager, expects to be completed in mid-September. The facility will receive a unit train from the company’s other new facility that is also under construction in Wallula, WA.
“We expect the first train to arrive in the beginning of October,” Mr. 
Esposito said.
Originally, Railex was looking at several sites in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, but Mr. Esposito said it chose to build the multi-million-dollar facility in Rotterdam due to “all of the synergies of truck, rail, building and town hitting at the same place. Rotterdam and Schenectady County have been very welcoming. We needed a location that was off an interstate as well as an expedited route for CSX. Given all the facets, Rotterdam was the place.”

Railex will be featured in 2 episodes of the television program Market

Railex will be featured in 2 episodes of the television program Market to Market and will air this weekend (5/22) and next weekend (5/29). The stories are going to be about the produce unit train and be in 2 parts. This weekend's story will primarily focus on the West Coast end and next week's story will focus on the East Coast end. 

Market to Market airs on PBS in several states across the country. In Iowa, it airs on Friday nights and Sunday afternoons. If Market to Market does not air in your part of the country, you can view it on Market to Market’s website at . It will be available on the web by Friday evening (5/22) and the same goes for next week’s episode (5/29). 
Hosted by Mark Pearson, Market to Market covers the 100 plus billion dollar business of food, and those issues affecting the 56 million citizens of rural America.

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trains may be used this fall to ship New York state .

Plans for a second train from Washington state were delayed this spring after a Jan. 19 landslide in Oregon blocked the main route the trains take. That route has been reopened, and Esposito said the second train likely will begin operating "sometime in late summer."

In the meantime, the original train has been lengthened, to 60 or more boxcars, he said.The "unit trains," as they're called, can be tracked by satellite as they move across the country. Customers also can monitor temperatures inside each of the cars as the trains move between Wallula and Rotterdam.Union Pacific Railroad and CSX Transportation jointly operate the trains, which stop only for crew changes and refueling.
Railex has been seeking cargo for the return trip to the West Coast. Tropicana products have been brought north from Florida by train, trucked to Rotterdam, and then taken to Washington by Railex for distribution in western Canada, Esposito said.
The trains may be used this fall to ship New York state apples to Washington state processing plants, where they would be converted to juice and applesauce, state apple industry officials have said.

Rotterdam distribution center to see more West Coast train traffic

Rotterdam distribution center to see more West Coast train traffic

ERIC ANDERSON, Deputy business editor -- Times Union -- August 11, 2008

Railex LLC expects to triple train traffic into its Rotterdam distribution center this fall as it launches a new service from California and adds a second train on its route from Washington state.
The 19-month-old service provides one refrigerated unit train per week each way. The trains, initially 55 cars, have been making the cross-country trip in five days or less, carrying vegetables, fruit and other perishables.The company estimates each train carries the equivalent of 220 tractor-trailers and saves 5.2 million gallons of diesel fuel a year. At $5 a gallon for diesel, that gives the company a cost advantage.
"We are more efficient (in) diesel fuel consumption," said Paul Esposito, vice president of sales and logistics for Railex.
The company is building a distribution center in Delano, Calif., its third one, which will be completed in September. Existing centers are in Rotterdam and in Wallula, Wash. Railex employs 150 workers in Rotterdam.

Coast-to-coast railcar pool

Coast-to-coast railcar pool ‘starting to take off’Doug Ohlemeier -- The Packer -- June 19, 2007

As shippers prepare to start the new Washington potato season, the state’s produce railcar pool is already seeing high demand.Service has been so successful, its backers are calling for additional cars to help fill demand.The Washington railcar pool program leases refrigerated railcars for Washington produce shippers’ use.Fewer shippers than expected participated in the program’s inaugural run last year when it hauled only 77 loads. This season, Rail Logistics, Overland Park, Kan., expects to haul 250-300 loads, said Mike Begnaud, vice president of sales and marketing.In May, all 31 of the program’s railcars were either loaded, en route to their destination or headed back to Washington for reloading, according to the Washington State Potato Commission, Moses Lake.

Chris Voigt, the commission’s executive director, said if new cars are ordered, it would likely be mid- to late summer before they could be in service.While Washington’s processing potatoes begin harvest after the Fourth of July, the state’s fresh potato season begins in mid-July and runs through early November.
“The timing is right. The program is starting to take off,” Voigt said. “It’s a great sign for us and our industry.”

shipping company has completed its $20 million refrigerated warehouse

Northwest produce to head East

Mary Hopkin -- Tri-cityherald.com -- September 7, 2006

WALLULA -- A New York-based shipping company has completed its $20 million refrigerated warehouse and rail loop in Wallula and plans to send its first train of Mid-Columbia produce to the East Coast in mid-October.

Jim Kleist, general manager of Railex Washington's Wallula facility, said as soon as a similar facility under construction in Rotterdam, N.Y., is complete, the first mile-long unit train full of potatoes, apples and other produce will leave Wallula on a five-day run to New York.

Both facilities include a two-mile oval of railroad track that passes through a refrigerated warehouse 1,500 feet long and 140 feet wide.

Trucks can unload at docks on the outside of the warehouse directly into the refrigerated portion of the building. The train pulls through the building and dock workers load the produce onto railcars pallet by pallet.

"The train will leave Wallula every Thursday," Kleist said. "The first train is already full and will be hauling potatoes, onions, pears and apples."

The first truckloads of potatoes arrived at the 210,000-square-foot warehouse Wednesday and employees began training on loading the bulky, 100-pound bags on pallets and then onto the train.

Transportation challenges force innovation

Transportation challenges force innovation

Angie Hanson -- The Packer -- May 9, 2008

LAS VEGAS — The transportation sector has faced several obstacles in recent years, including fuel costs, driver shortages, emission regulations and product rejection.Those pressures have forced companies to adopt more efficient, carrier-friendly practices that ultimately enhance operations and reduce costs, according to speakers during a perishable transport and supply chain logistics workshop May 5 at the United Fresh Marketplace.To respond to the multitude of issues, The Kroger Co. has implemented several new transportation programs, including use of routing guides and on-time delivery reports, said Carl Swartz, corporate transportation manager of perishables for the Cincinnati-based company.“It’s opened our eyes to carriers that are performing well and the ones that are substandard,” Swartz said.Kroger has increased its reliance on technology to strengthen efficiencies, using a Web-based transportation management system that tracks truck location and in-transit temperature, and scheduling distribution center appointments online, Swartz said.

Railex in October started service

Railex in October started service of its 55-car unit train that runs from Wallula, Wash., to Rotterdam, N.Y. As a unit train, all the cars stay hooked together during the entire trip.

Both terminals have cold storage facilities.

Fresh potatoes remain the highest-volume produce item hauled by Rail Logistics. The company ships a lot of frozen fruit and vegetables and is working to increase apple shipments, Begnaud said. Fresh shipments account for half the loads, he said.

Thanks to a federal $2 million appropriation, the pool provides refrigerated railcars that have often been in short supply in the Northwest. Washington’s legislature provided the state’s transportation department funds to begin the pool operation.

“The funding is one thing,” Begnaud said. “If the shippers don’t use the service, it won’t work. Now, they’re making it work.”

“I think you will see some more market movement come out of Railex,” said Paul Esposito, Railex’s vice president of logistics. “You should see a real increase in apples, potatoes and onions coming out of the Pacific Northwest. We are already looking at an expansion of commodities and are talking with shippers of pears, cherries and other stone fruit.”

Coast-to-coast railcar pool

Coast-to-coast railcar pool ‘starting to take off’

Doug Ohlemeier -- The Packer -- June 19, 2007

As shippers prepare to start the new Washington potato season, the state’s produce railcar pool is already seeing high demand.
Service has been so successful, its backers are calling for additional cars to help fill demand.The Washington railcar pool program leases refrigerated railcars for Washington produce shippers’ use.Fewer shippers than expected participated in the program’s inaugural run last year when it hauled only 77 loads. This season, Rail Logistics, Overland Park, Kan., expects to haul 250-300 loads, said Mike Begnaud, vice president of sales and marketing.In May, all 31 of the program’s railcars were either loaded, en route to their destination or headed back to Washington for reloading, according to the Washington State Potato Commission, Moses Lake.

Rail is a realistic alternative

Rail is a realistic alternative, even for those in the West, where trains are more available, said Michael Locati, president of Walla Walla, Wash.-based Locati Farms Inc.

“I think we’re going to see quite a resurgence in rail,” he said. “And we do have Railex right in our backyard. It should be a little faster. But you’ve got to remember that you’re still paying a fuel charge and it costs money to move product across the U.S. But rail is a little cheaper, and we’re going to see a little more stuff going on rail cars and maybe less on the roads.”

Derrell Kelso Jr., owner of Stockton, Calif.-based Onions Etc., agreed that rail is becoming a viable option today.

“You have one engine taking a bunch of cars, and it leaves on Wednesday and gets to its destination four or five days later,” he said. “The service is impeccable. Customers like it. Deliveries are for the most part on time. Customers are happy not waiting for the truck. It’s a big old train that has a schedule and meets it. It’s just begun. It’s very exciting for this industry.”

Rails gathers little steam in onion shipping

Rails gathers little steam in onion shipping

Jim Offner -- The Packer -- May 15, 2008

With trucks in short supply and fuel prices rising, one might suspect the use of rail for shipping onions to market would be heading upward.

But, it’s not gaining any particular momentum, marketing agents say.

“Out of specific areas, like Idaho, eastern Oregon and Washington, they’ve moved quite a bit by rail,” said Wayne Mininger, executive vice president of the Greeley, Colo.-based National Onion Association. “But rail isn’t an option in quite a few growing regions. A lot of them really don’t have any kind of service that you can work out through your rail terminals.”

Shippers are simply going to have to depend on trucks, as usual, Mininger said.

“But, it has been a help to have rail available in the Northwest,” he said.

Railex LLC coming to Rotterdam

Railex LLC coming to Rotterdam

Capital News 9 web staff -- October 27, 2005
A new company is coming to Schenectady County and bringing with it the promise of 300 new jobs and plans to save millions of gallons of fuel each year.

Railex LLC will use the Rotterdam Industrial Park as its East Coast hub to move food products across the United States by train instead of tractor trailers. The new facility will be a 200-thousand-square-foot, $18-million building.

Local leaders said besides the addition of jobs, we'll all see the benefits trickle down.

The Rotterdam Industrial Park will be used as Railex LLC's East Coast hub, bringing 300 jobs to the area.

Metroplex Chairman Ray Gillen said, "For area shoppers, that means that we should be able to substantially reduce the prices of product because the cost of transportation is significantly less. So not only does it benefit the county and everything in terms of industrial development, but it's really going to benefit the consumers in this area."

East Coast, according to a news release from the Citrusdal

South African citrus to be shipped on Railex cars

South African citrus will be more readily available west of the Mississippi this summer, thanks to an agreement between the industry and a leading produce rail service.

Andy Nelson -- The Packer -- May 28, 2010

Riverhead, N.Y. based Railex LLC will ship South African citrus west from the East Coast, according to a news release from the Citrusdal, South Africa-based Western Cape Citrus Producers Forum.
Western retailers will have South African fruit six days after it reaches the Port of Philadelphia, according to the release.
In 2009, South African citrus sales from the Midwest and West made up about 35% of the industry’s U.S. total, according to the forum. For 2010, officials expect it to be 50% of all sales. Railex ships fruits and vegetables back and forth from Delano, Calif., and Wallula, Wash., and Rotterdam, N.Y.

Railex service delivers South African citrus to West Coast terminals by train

Railex service delivers South African citrus to West Coast terminals by train

Joel Gebet -- The Produce News -- July 29, 2010

South African citrus is making its way to the West Coast this year in large volumes for the first time in the decade that it has been exported to the United States, and Railex LLC is playing a major part in the logistics enabling this to take place.

Railex, a division of Riverhead, NY based ADS Management LLC, is known for its four refrigerated, temperature-controlled unit trains that depart from its West Coast terminals in Delano, CA, and Wallula, WA, and terminate on the East Coast at its terminal in Schenectady, NY, weekly.

This year, importers of South African citrus are utilizing Railex’s trains to move their product as the trains make their return trips back to their respective terminals on the West Coast.

Paul Esposito, vice president of logistics and strategic planning for AMPCO

Kuntz said the budget contains an additional $1 million to help pay for a water system, an access road and additional property for the center. In addition, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) secured $1.5 million in federal transportation funds to help pay for the rail line. Kuntz said the port also has secured a $400,000 economic development sales tax grant from Walla Walla County and $750,000 from the state Community Economic Revitalization Board.

The weekly 55-car train will consist of 64-foot, refrigerated boxcars that can carry as much as four truckloads of produce each, for a total capacity of about 8 million pounds. Union Pacific is guaranteeing delivery of the produce from Wallula to a Schenectady, New York, warehouse, in 124 hours.The speed lies in keeping the load intact enroute, according to Union Pacific. The train will stop only in Chicago for a crew change before steaming on to New York for unloading and distribution. Oregon and Washington apples, onions and potatoes are expected to make up most of the cargo. Railex has been busy marketing the new service among its large Northwest growers.

Paul Esposito, vice president of logistics and strategic planning for AMPCO, which owns Railex, said growers have never had this kind of service in the past.Kuntz said the first 55-car train is already completely booked. “It’s hard to get produce from the West Coast to the East Coast. Conventional rail takes too long and has too many stops. And cars tend to get lost when they stop in rail yards.”East Coast markets rely heavily on produce imported from Central and South America to meet consumer demand, he said. “But the imported produce that fills the void on the East Coast isn’t as high quality as West Coast produce delivered quickly from the fields.”

New produce express to East Coast

New produce express to East Coast

The special service for fresh produce is faster than conventional rail because the load stays intact between Walla Walla and the East Coast.

Bill Reinert -- March 15, 2006

This fall, Washington and Oregon growers will be able rush their fresh produce from Wallula, Washington, to East Coast markets in about five days via what the Port of Walla Walla says is the West Coast’s first express, dedicated produce rail service.The weekly service is being launched through an agreement between Union Pacific, Florida-based CSX Transportation, and Railex, LLC, a division of AMPCO Distribution Services, a national produce company. With help from the port, Railex is building a $20 million refrigerated produce distribution center in Wallula, southeast of the Tri-Cities. Port director Jim Kuntz said the port is raising about $7 million to cover infrastructure costs associated with the project. The state of Washington and the federal government are also helping to fund the venture, which is expected to give the region’s growers an economic boost.

The Washington Legislature in March passed two funding bills to help boost the project. Lawmakers approved $2.5 million in state transportation funds for the port to construct a loop rail line to access Railex’s distribution center, which is being built on land Railex purchased from the port.

Blue Ribbon has been marketing high-quality, large- profile fresh potatoes

According to Mr. Darrington, Railex service has helped move some product into the eastern United States, opening a new marketing zone.

"It’s a quick train," Mr. Darrington said. "It’s out [from Washington] on Thursdays and in [New York] on Tuesdays." A distinct advantage when compared to trucking is that product can actually be delivered to customers faster when weather is bad, he stated.

This season, Blue Ribbon has been marketing high-quality, large- profile fresh potatoes. Yields were good this season, he said, and marketing of the current crop will conclude next month.Potato movement is split evenly between domestic and export. "We’ve got pretty good Canadian business," Mr. Darrington stated. Exports also move into the Pacific Rim. The majority of product is sold to wholesalers and foodservice.Blue Ribbon Produce has been mechanizing its operation to deal with labor issues. Mr. Darrington said that automated bailers and palletizers have been added to facilitate production.

Railex service has helped move some product into the eastern United States

Blue Ribbon using Railex to its advantage

Lora Abcarian -- http://www.theproducenews.com -- January 21, 2008

According to David Darrington, marketing and sales manager for Blue Ribbon Produce LLC in Quincy, WA, the company has been able to take advantage of the Railex transportation network to move fresh potatoes.
"We have done some [shipments] with Railex," he told The Produce News. "The customers really like it. I hope [the service] gets patronized enough that it’s a success."Blue Ribbon produces Norkotahs for both domestic and export markets. According to Mr. Darrington, Railex service has helped move some product into the eastern United States, opening a new marketing zone.

"It’s a quick train," Mr. Darrington said. "It’s out [from Washington] on Thursdays and in [New York] on Tuesdays." A distinct advantage when compared to trucking is that product can actually be delivered to customers faster when weather is bad, he stated.This season, Blue Ribbon has been marketing high-quality, large- profile fresh potatoes. Yields were good this season, he said, and marketing of the current crop will conclude next month.

According to Mr. Voigt, WSPC looked at 12 different certification programs to develop standardized parameters

According to Mr. Voigt, WSPC looked at 12 different certification programs to develop standardized parameters. “ The program would be all-encompassing and address sustainability issues such as water use, employee training and pesticide management. 

“We’ll roll it out to the industry,” Mr. Voigt went on to say “An important piece is the education piece.” The program, he indicated, would answer a range of producer questions from how growers can develop sustainable farming practices to how they can document everything needed for a third-party audit.

Development of this new program comes at a time when the U.S. Department of Agriculture is requiring producers who sell to the federal government to be GAP-certified.
Concern relating to potato seed availability is also coming to the forefront. Mr. Voigt said there was a golden nematode finding in two fields in Alberta, Canada. According to Mr. Voigt, approximately 30 percent of seed potatoes purchased by Washington growers comes from the Canadian province.
“We know this is already affecting growers in Florida and Georgia,” he said.
Last year, a soil testing protocol was developed after the same pest was found in a commercial seed field in Quebec. “That’s when the two fields tested positive in Alberta,” Mr. Voigt explained. USDA was notified last October, and extensive grid testing was conducted.

According to Mr. Voigt, the testing did not yield any nematodes. The border is currently closed to seed potato importation, and Mr. Voigt said, “We certainly hope it opens soon.” Washington growers begin planting operations in February.

Officials in the United States and Canada agreed to do traceback and traceforward to see how extensive the nematode problem might be. “We need some more investigation work,” Mr. Voigt said. “If it is contained in those two farms, the border could be opened up. It affects so many growers around the country.”