Steel Case and Danser Group, winners of the Riverdating inland waterway trophies 21.11.2014: Two Riverdating 2014 awards for inland waterway logistics innovation were

Two Riverdating 2014 awards for inland waterway logistics innovation were presented last night by VNF to two European projects, winners of “shipper” and “operator” categories.


During the largest European event dedicated to the promotion of inland waterway transport, 6 candidates were eligible for the 2014 Riverdating awards of VNF, which honor the most innovative inland waterway transport and logistic projects and operations:


Shipper Category: CFT Group, with the urban logistics project Distriseine; MM Multimodal Shuttle, presenting a regular line of river transport containers on the Moselle river; Chemgas Barging and Danser Group, with two natural gas drive projects.


Operator Category: Steel Case and De Verband, with an inland waterway handling system for dry bulk.


Of the 6 applications submitted, the jury decided to reward:



SHIPPERS CATEGORY

STEEL CASE, worldwide leader in office furniture, represented by Marc Bazenet

Project: LUDEB (Sustainable urban logistics for office furnishment)


STEEL CASE has developed and manufactured a 20m3 container as well as a barge road door-to-door delivery service, suitable for urban logistics of manufactured goods. This global service reduces the number of operators and creates an important logistical added-value, upstream and downstream of river transport. For example, a 38 meter ship can transport up to 20 containers.


This service allows for the opening of inland water transport to a whole new market, with the ability to easily integrate it in supply chains.



OPERATORS CATEGORY

Danser Group, inland barge operator, represented by Ben Maelissa

Projects: Hubs & Spokes Network & LNG Refit

In developing a hub-and-spokes system, Danser Group created a multimodal network between sea and river ports. This project is the result of a regional and cross-border maritime mapping, of a study of continental flows combined with the collection of information on transactions between terminal and barge operators.


Developed on an existing craft, the LNG Refit enables ships to refuel on LNG (liquefied natural gas), thus reducing the carbon footprint of this mode of transport.



Marc Papinutti, General Director of VNF and Damien Degros, Head of Corporate Banking at ING, sponsor of the event, recognized the most innovative initiatives in the field, thus encouraging modal shifts towards the waterway.


ABOUT VOIES NAVIGABLES DE FRANCE – www.vnf.fr


The 4,700 employees of Voies Navigables de France act daily to ensure the waterway public service. As a public administrative institution of the Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy, VNF acts on the following:


- Infrastructure: VNF manages, operates, improves and develops the largest European network of inland waterways (6,700 km of canals and managed rivers, more than 3,000 art structures and 40,000 hectares of Public River).


- Freight transport: VNF develops freight river transport by promoting and encouraging modal and multimodal logistics.


- Tourism and river heritage: VNF preserves and enhances the equipment and living areas around the waterway in order to support river tourism as a driver of local economic development


- Sustainable development and water: VNF optimises water management in an environmentally responsible approach aimed at the preservation of biodiversity.


Facilitating discussions between economic and institutional actors (shippers, carriers, local governments, tourism operators…) for the development of the waterway sector, VNF offers and develops a wide range of services adapted to the needs of waterway users.




Pauline Leybold, Tiffany Allenet-  photo Riverdate