Aberdeen Standard Investment’s AIPUT fund (Airport Industrial and Property Unit Trust) has commissioned a new report that highlights the scale of progress and future potential for the adoption of automated transport and logistics technology at the UK’s airports, including London’s Heathrow, where AIPUT holds 2 million sq ft of buildings
High-speed rail connecting all of the UK mainland by 2050 would put “rocket fuel in Britain’s economy”, a leading transport think tank has proposed. The move would shrink a long-standing productivity gap with countries such as Germany, Italy and France, Greengauge 21 said. It would also reduce an over-reliance on
DB Cargo UK, the rail freight operator has announced that they will be working with Axiom Rain and WH Davies in order to convert 110 HTA coal hoppers into new state-of-the-art HRA aggregate hopper wagons. The investment that has been made into this project is an illustration of the commitment
Aberdeen Standard Investment’s AIPUT fund (Airport Industrial and Property Unit Trust) has commissioned a new report that highlights the scale of progress and future potential for the adoption of automated transport and logistics technology at the UK’s airports, including London’s Heathrow, where AIPUT holds 2 million sq ft of buildings dedicated to supporting the airport’s freight and logistics service providers. The report has been jointly produced by specialist UK aviation real estate consultancy ChappellKing and Dornier Consulting International GmbH and it explores the potential efficiency gains from automation across a plethora of airport-related functions, such as cargo-handling and logistics operations, as well as passenger transportation to and within airports. “Autonomous technology promises enormous benefits to airports and the service companies that support them, transforming the way airports work and improving efficiency and safety, both for passengers and other airport users,” said Nick Smith, AIPUT Fund Manager. “At Gatwick, for example, 90% of the airport’s airside vehicles are stationary at any one time, which is both hugely inefficient and demands a vast amount of space. A much smaller pool of electric-powered autonomous vehicles would drastically cut costs, free up land, reduce emissions, and improve safety. In Düsseldorf, a newly-developed robotic car parking system has demonstrated a 60% reduction in required parking space compared to human drivers.” A number of UK airports have already welcomed trials of a variety of autonomous technological applications. Heathrow was the first to complete a number of trials of automated air-side vehicles, in collaboration with IAG Cargo and Oxbotica. Meanwhile, Gatwick became the first airport in the world to trials the use of autonomous vehicles to shuttle staff across the airfield, demonstrating that autonomous vehicles can operate safely in highly-complex airfield environments. “Airports and airport real estate providers need to be ready for the introduction of automated technology as soon as operational and safety regulations permit. AIPUT intends to stay ahead of the curve by embracing automation, working with our tenants and partners to build autonomous technology into our site masterplans; which we believe will adapt and future-proof our UK estate assets, ensuring that our clients’ buildings and facilities will be able to accommodate and benefit fully from the rapid development of autonomous technology,” added Nick. The UK Government has recently announced its support toward the industry by offering a £22.4 million funding under the Industrial Strategy for off-road self-driving, which is believed to revolutionise productivity in a range of sectors, including mining, ports and airports. AIPUT will be ensuring that it is at the forefront of planning for and providing the cutting edge facilities that greater automation will require.
High-speed rail connecting all of the UK mainland by 2050 would put “rocket fuel in Britain’s economy”, a leading transport think tank has proposed. The move would shrink a long-standing productivity gap with countries such as Germany, Italy and France, Greengauge 21 said. It would also reduce an over-reliance on London by lowering journey times and allowing other cities to flourish, it added. A new connection in the West Midlands would see HS2 trains speed to cities such as Bristol, Cardiff, Newcastle and Edinburgh, reducing the need for environmentally harmful cars, the group suggested. HS2 is a planned high-speed rail network, with trains holding more than 1,000 commuters travelling up to 250 mph, from London to Birmingham and to Manchester and Leeds. Services on the London-Birmingham phase of the £56 billion network are predicted to open from 2026. Greengauge 21 director Jim Steer said: “Britain lacks a long-term national railway strategy beyond HS2. “We need a plan to put rocket fuel into our economic productivity and today’s report sets out proposals to do so. “It is vital for the future of the country that no region is left behind, and the national railway strategy needs to reach all parts of the country.” The report, titled Beyond HS2, said boosting national productivity should be the guiding priority for re-designing the rail network.
DB Cargo UK, the rail freight operator has announced that they will be working with Axiom Rain and WH Davies in order to convert 110 HTA coal hoppers into new state-of-the-art HRA aggregate hopper wagons. The investment that has been made into this project is an illustration of the commitment that DB Cargo UK has to the aggregates industry and the plans that the company has for growth in the business and in the sector going forward. During the conversion process, one of the coal hopper bays is removed, which will reduce the length of the wagon by 20% of its original size. The hopper will be reduced from 17.757 meters to 14.347 meters. However, it is predicted that despite the reduction in length, the hopper’s gross weight capacity will remain the same. The former coal hoppers are expected to still be able to carry 101.6 tonnes. This will allow for more wagons to be transported per train and could then increase the payload tonnage of the train by 447 tonnes for the same length. This calculation is based on 22 HTA wagon set and a 27 HRA wagon set. The expert conversion of these HTA coal hoppers into aggregate hoppers will be carried out at both the Axiom Rail site, which is located in Stokem and the WH Davies site in Mansfield. The conversion work is getting underway following a successful five-month trial of wagon 41 70 6723 001-7. This converted wagon is a prototype HRA wagon and managed to successfully run a full service, carrying aggregates from Peak forest to Salford Hope Street. DB Cargo UK is fully committed to re-engineering all of the HTAs in to HRAs and it has been predicted that all 100 hoppers will be in full service by the third Quarter of 2018.