ECS, the market leader in supply chain solutions and intermodal transport, received a Baanbrekers Award in the 'Logistics service provider' category on Tuesday evening. This award is presented annually by Multimodaal Vlaanderen, the multimodal advice centre of the Flemish logistics innovation platform VIL. The jury praised ECS's impressive modal shift project, which involves the transfer of 21.400 trucks per year from road to rail. This is the second time that ECS has received this award.
The Baanbrekers Award for Logistics Service Provider, which was presented at the award ceremony in Technopolis, crowns two new rail connections that ECS has opened in recent months, from Zeebrugge to Lovosice in the Czech Republic and Crailsheim in southern Germany. Together, these train lines keep 21.400 containers off the road each year, reducing CO₂ emissions as well as reducing congestion and increasing road safety.
Intermodal
ECS has long been committed to intermodal transport, including rail-connected high-bay warehouses in Zeebrugge and hubs across Europe. These efforts have already earned the company a Baanbrekers Award in 2022. “Our mission is to make intermodal transport the standard in Europe,” said Cédric Lanckriet, Sales Manager at ECS. “Winning this award once again confirms that we are on the right track and encourages us to reach our ambitious target of 100 million train-kilometres by 2030.”
Increasing frequency
The next step in this plan is to increase the frequency of services on both rail links. To make this possible, ECS is actively taking steps to increase the volume of containerised freight between the UK, Ireland, northern France, Belgium and Luxembourg towards the east. The Crailsheim route already connects seamlessly with existing rail and short sea connections to the UK and Ireland, among others, strengthening the intermodal transport specialist's logistics network.