Railex LLC is playing a major part in the logistics

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.
“2010 is the first time in the 11 years we have been exporting to the United States that we will be able to extend our geographic footprint to include the West Coast,” Western Cape Citrus Producers Forum Chairman Gerrit van der Merwe said in a press release issued in late May. “An arrangement with Railex will enable retailers to have our fruit available and consumers to enjoy our citrus within six days of leaving the port in Philadelphia.”

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.
“2010 is the first time in the 11 years we have been exporting to the United States that we will be able to extend our geographic footprint to include the West Coast,” Western Cape Citrus Producers Forum Chairman Gerrit van der Merwe said in a press release issued in late May. “An arrangement with Railex will enable retailers to have our fruit available and consumers to enjoy our citrus within six days of leaving the port in Philadelphia.”

Railex LLC is planning a new terminal in the southeastern United States

Railex LLC is planning a new terminal in the southeastern United States to handle produce and other perishables, according to a report in The Produce News.Railex, which began operations in October 2006 with a single train carrying produce from Washington state to Rotterdam, now operates four trains a week in each direction, two from Washington and two from a recently completed warehouse in central California.

The company employs more than 200 people in Rotterdam, from which produce is distributed up and down the East Coast. Railex has been seeking goods to ship back to the West Coast, and recently has had some success with such high-value items as wines from Germany, Spain, France and Italy, according to The Produce News.There was no word whether any New York state wine was making its way to either California or Washington.Railex is seeking to open its southeastern terminal by the end of this year, Paul Esposito, the company’s senior vice presdent of sales and logistics, told The Produce News.

Doug Ohlemeier

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.

The 55-car train will consist of new refrigerated boxcars

The 55-car train will consist of new refrigerated boxcars that can carry as much as four truckloads of produce each. The high-speed travel time - 124 hours - is partly achieved by keeping the train intact from its loading point until arrival as a "unit" at destination."We believe this new service will provide an alternative method to ship perishable produce from Washington to New York other than over-the-road transportation," said John Philp, Union Pacific Railroad, assistant vice president - food and refrigerated products.

"We are very excited about this new service option for shippers of perishable goods, which will fill an existing transportation void by allowing for a fifth-morning arrival from Washington State to the Northeast," said Andy Pollak, CEO and owner of AMPCO Distribution Services Management, LLC.The refrigerated boxcars are a new generation of 64-foot railcars with enhanced insulation, energy efficient cooling systems and GPS monitoring to ensure proper temperature control. The unit train is designed to carry products such as apples, pears, onions and potatoes. In addition, this new service opens the gateway for a variety of other highly perishable commodities currently transported by truck. The train will provide Washington perishable shippers with both a high-speed and reliable transportation alternative while offering the cost savings that rail provides.