NTU celebrates two decades in Logistics Centre development

NTU – Strategic Development & Consulting has been working with developing the integrated Logistics Centre concept in EU, TRACECA countries and Balkans. Through this work a wide range of experiences has been gathered – resulting in a Best Practice Knowledge Base developed in cooperation with central Logistics Centres associations. Within this Best Practice Knowledge Base the importance of creating these efficient transport nodes is highlighted, something which is of growing importance today, as freight flows increase. This has made it possible for NTU to successfully perform privately funded, EU Framework programme funded (e.g. Freight Village 2000), EUROPEAID funded and nationally funded Logistics Centre development consulting. These consulting activities have been coherent with latest European Logistics Centre standards and often performed in cooperation with EUROPLATFORMS – the European Network of Logistics Centres. NTU has identified vital characteristics for a Logistics Centre, such as co-modality, openness, multifunctionality, ICT accessibility, intersectionality and cost sharing. It is also crucial that the management of a Logistics Centre is separated from transport, logistics, and other service operations. NTU has determined that there are a number of stages in the development of a Logistics Centre, through which these characteristics develop. The first stage is that of a transport cluster, which can develop via a virtual logistic centre to a physical logistics centre, to the final stage of networking logistics centres. During the last 5 years there has been an increased focus on this final stage, the networking and network of logistics centres. New European policies / programmes such as the general TEN-T programme, Motorways of the Sea and Marco Polo I+II have been increasingly important to integrate in the Logistics Centre concept. Please contact NTU should you need further information on Logistics Centres and their networks. The definition of an international Logistics Centre.