"RailEx -- The FedEx of Rail Shipping

This is an excerpt taken from the "Growth Guy", Weekly insights from Verne Harnish, the syndicated "Growth Guy" columnist bringing the resources, articles, trends, and best practices for growing leaders of growing companies.

"RailEx -- The FedEx of Rail Shipping -- speaking of trains (and maybe why Buffett made his investment), the company that most intrigues me is RailEx. Launched in 2006 and founded by Andy Pollack, whose family has been in the produce distribution business for decades, RailEx is doing for refrigerated produce what FedEx did for overnight packages, right now linking the east and west coasts of the U.S. Requiring a $58 million start-up investment in partnership with two major railroads, Union Pacific and CSX Transportation, RailEx, dubbed the "Fresh Express", promises to transform the way we ship most products, using a hub and spoke system of warehouses, trains, and local trucks, eliminating the need for long haul trucks and the damage they cause highways. I can't wait for them to go public!"

Railex offers third weekly run from West Coast to New York

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.”

“The advantages to the WCCPF and their importers are significant as it opens new markets for them from San Diego through Portland to Seattle, as well as the inland cities.” Bill Welker, Railex’s vice president of national accounts, said in the release.

In mid-July, Mr. Welker told The Produce News that South African citrus importers had “been proactive to get involved with Railex,” and are using the Railex system as it was intended to be used, as “a forward deployment platform. This enables [the importers’] customers to order one day out, and this way the customers don’t order more than they need,” he said
.

Railex Now Operating Four Trains A Week From West Coast

The food distributor has begun operating two round trips a week between Wallula, Washington and its warehouse in Rotterdam Industrial Park, plus another two round trips a week between Delano, Calif., and Rotterdam.

The company at last count had nearly 200 employees.

The trains are a joint operaton of Union Pacific Railroad and CSX Transportation. While much of the produce has moved from west to east, Railex actively seeks products from the East Coast to send back on the trains.

The appeal of this mode of transport: Each train can replace 200 or more trucks, and reduces consumption of diesel fuel by 100,000 gallons or more, Railex says.

Railex began operating its first train in October 2006.

Railex LLC is looking to expand service into the southeastern and central United States

Railex LLC is looking to expand service into the southeastern and central United States. 

Paul Esposito, Railex's Northeast division and corporate logistics vice president, made the announcement March 26 during an Internet-based presentation by the firm, which is a division of Riverhead, NY-based ADS Management. 

"We have plans to expand Railex into the Southeast and into the Central portion of the United States, and ultimately into Texas and to export," Mr. Esposito said. 

Railex currently operates four weekly refrigerated, temperature-controlled unit trains that depart from its West Coast terminals and terminate on the East Coast at its terminal in Schenectady, NY. Two of the trains depart from its Wallula, WA, freight forward distribution terminal, and the remaining two depart from its freight forward distribution terminal in Delano, CA. 

Railex offers guaranteed five-day service from both the Delano and Wallula terminals to Schenectady, which is located just west of Albany, NY. 

Although Railex has "struggled through the economy like other industries have," Mr. Esposito said that the firm still has "some very, very aggressive growth programs. It is our hope and our goal to at least be into the southeastern section of the United States by either late this year or early next year." 

While he did not mention specific cities, Mr. Esposito said that Railex was looking at "getting into southern Georgia or northern Florida." 

He said that Railex is also "currently in negotiations and looking at services into the Central portion of the United States, either in Chicago, St. Louis or Memphis." 

South African citrus to be shipped on Railex cars

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.

“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.”

“The advantages to the WCCPF and their importers are significant as it opens new markets for them from San Diego through Portland to Seattle, as well as the inland cities.” Bill Welker, Railex’s vice president of national accounts, said in the release.

In mid-July, Mr. Welker told The Produce News that South African citrus importers had “been proactive to get involved with Railex,” and are using the Railex system as it was intended to be used, as “a forward deployment platform. This enables [the importers’] customers to order one day out, and this way the customers don’t order more than they need,” he said.

Refrigerated Transportation - Freight Forwarding distribution solutions

Refrigerated transport is highly recommended for perishable horticultural produce. Temperature management is key parameter during long distance  succesful transport. Average road temperatures can be much higher than air temperatures during hot months of the year, thus offering challenges for refrigerated vehicles to maintain recommended temperatures.

Railex, a state-of-the-art, refrigerated unit train that offers coast-to-coast rail transit in 5 days is revolutionizing the <a href="http://www.railexusa.com" target="_blank">refrigerated transportation</a> and logistics services in all commodity based industries. Railex's platform provides inventory visibility, reliability as well as optimum handling and sustainable solutions to manage your supply chain.

Railex Benefits:

Freight forward distribution offers free temperature controlled storage and door to door service. With a non-stop schedule and multi-stop pick up Railex takes the hassle out of logistics.Consolidation capabilities eliminate expensive <a href="http://www.railexusa.com" target="_blank">refrigerated transportation</a> blankets.Separate computer controlled temperature zones during storage and in transit enable the simultaneous shipment of mixed commodities.The Railex unit train stays intact so your product avoids shifting, temperature issues and time delays, resulting in a less traumatic transit.Unmatched capacity. Railex can accommodate TL and LTL "Less Than Truckload" shipments.

Railex offers further inventory transparency with traceability through RF infrastructure and technology. Every pallet is labeled and barcoded and can be tracked via our GPS system so you always have real-time access to your inventory.

1 Call does it all – with Railex you're only ever 1 phone call away from the long list of Railex's superior services and equipment. Railex has the ability to isolate your products, providing a temperature controlled journey with fresh air exchange.5 day rail transit schedule and expedited short-haul delivery ensure that your product arrives on-time.At Railex our top priority is not only timely delivery but also the quality of your final product. We go the extra mile to inspect your product at both origin and destination to be absolutely certain that your customers are receiving the superior value that they are accustomed to.

Railex state-of-the-art storage facilities and temperature controlled unit trains have the ability to maintain a -20° environment. Railcars are loaded and unloaded inside a cooled facility, never breaking the cold chain. 24 hour security monitored facility Camera surveillance and digital video recording Sealed box cars Security system with Prox card restricted access Facilities are AIB, SQF, and HACCP certified

As a further safety precaution Railex has $2 million in cargo insurance.

In order to help regulate the life of your products Railex offers multi-ethylene zones.Railex's sustainable solutions provide reduced transportation and infrastructure costs. MyRailex web-enabled, real time, state-of-the-art information system offers visibility with access to your personalized and secure virtual warehouse. This online suite helps integrate order process, <a href="http://www.railexusa.com" target="_blank">refrigerated transportation</a>, lot identification and warehousing, while minimizing administration time and total logistical costs.