Increasingly the Hoosier state is at the center of a transportation network that moves cargo seamlessly across all modes of transportation. Today's integrated economy requires a comprehensive logistics strategy for the state of Indiana.

"The transportation, distribution and logistics industry is a critical success factor to Indiana's economic vitality," says Rich Cooper, executive director of the Ports of Indiana, which organized the annual Indiana Logistics Summit. "It's integral to our way of life, touching everything from steel to sportswear. Growing this industry will enable Indiana to take full advantage of its ideal geographical location. to boost the state's economy."

By road. Ground transportation has long been a hallmark of Indiana's economy. Leveraging the state's motto of being the "Crossroads of America" has encouraged a number of trucking companies to take advantage of the Indiana's 14 interstate highways to reach the 75 percent of all U.S. businesses that are located within a day's drive.

For example, Celadon Trucking was founded in Indianapolis in 1985 and is now one of the top truckload carriers in North America. The company employs 3,800 and operates 3,000 trucks that ship cargo in and between the United States, Canada and Mexico. Chairman and CEO Steve Russell says increasing demands for cargo transportation means opportunities for new jobs in Indiana.

"We believe capacity in our industry continues to be constrained by a shortage of qualified drivers," he says. "We address the driver shortage by recruiting safe and experienced drivers, providing newer equipment, and offering competitive compensation and lifestyle programs

While Celadon specializes in long-distance deliveries, another major ground transportation company operating in Indiana is United Parcel Service. Its brown trucks make 159,000 local deliveries in the state each day. The company, which was founded in 1907 as a messenger company in Seattle with a single bicycle, has operated in Indiana for 50 years and employs more than 7,000 people-at 100 facilities in the state.

Sen. Tom Wyss (R-Fort Wayne) recognized UPS during the current legislative session with a resolution marking the company's 100th year of operation. "If you look at what they've done over these past 100 years, it's just remarkable," Wyss says, noting that all UPS vehicles nationwide are registered in Indiana and have "Indiana" license plates.

"Three years ago we were looking to partner with a state to help us with registration and licensing issues, and Indiana stepped forward," explains Bob Severson, vice president and chief operations officer of the UPS Indiana distribution efforts.

By rail. A surge in commodity prices in the past several years has helped to boost the fortunes of the nation's railroads. The Indiana Department of Transportation oversees some 4,500 miles of railroad over which rail cars move more than 100 million tons of freight each year, including coal, grain, metal products and chemicals. Class I railroads operating in Indiana include Norfolk Southern, CSX Transportation and Canadian National, while 15 Indiana counties and 86 communities are served exclusively by shortline railroads that handle more than 350,000 carloads per year. As the state's ethanol industry develops, rail transportation is expected to play a key role in transporting shipments out of state.

One company welcoming the resurgence of rail cargo is The Indiana Rail Road Co., a 500-mile regional freight railroad that hauls 170,000 carloads of freight-more than 15 million tons of goods annually. The railroad carries traffic between Chicago, Louisville, Indianapolis and Newton, Illinois, with connections to major western and southern carriers. The Indiana Rail Road was founded in 1986 and maintains headquarters in Indnanapolis.

"Regional railroads such as ours provide a vital link between local and regional shippers and the large, longhaul railroads that move freight from coast to coast," says president Thomas Hoback.

By ship. Although it's less obvious than other means of transportation, there is also a great deal of commerce that travels by water in Indiana. More than half the state's border is water, providing 400 miles of direct access the Great Lakes/St. Lawrence Seaway and the Inland Waterway System. Some 70 million tons of cargo travels through Indiana's waterways each year.

The state has three public ports: one on Lake Michigan in Portage, and two on the Ohio River at Jeffersonville, across the river from Louisville, and at Mount Vernon, 15 miles west of Evansville. The main cargo moving through the Ports of Indiana are shipments of steel, grain, coal, fertilizer, limestone, paper, containers, salt, cement and heavy lift equipment that is mostly headed overseas.

One company that has capitalized on the state's waterway system is American Commercial Lines in Jeffersonville. A fully integrated network of marine transportation and services companies that employs more than 2,700, the company is a leading barge transportation provider and manufacturer.

The company operates a fleet of more than 3,000 barges powered by 150 tugboats that move freight on the United States Inland Waterways System, which consists of the Mississippi River System, its connecting waterways and the Gulf Intracoastal Waterways.

Its Jeffboat division is the largest single-site inland shipbuilding and repair facility in the United States. Although the operation dates back to the 1800s, the company employs skilled shipbuilders who use technically advanced marine design to build tanker and hopper barges, river towboats and specialty vessels.

Growing demand for the company's water transportation services resulted in $942 million in revenue for American Commercial Lines in 2006. "This was a very good year for ACL. Revenues exceeded the company's previous record high by 20 percent," says Mark R. Holden, president and CEO.

By air. Indianapolis International Airport dominates the state's air transportation with more than eight million passengers and one million ton of cargo each year, ranking it as the seventh-largest air cargo facility in the United States. Much of that traffic is the result of FedEx maintaining its second-largest hub in the world at the airport, where it employs more than 4,000 and last year announced a $214 million expansion that is expected to include direct flights to Asia.

Other air cargo operations are taking notice and eyeing Indiana as a potential site for a new cargo hub. Cargolux Airlines took the first step by launching two weekly flights to Indianapolis from Luxemburg using giant 747 freighter aircraft to bring pharmaceutical products supporting Roche Diagnostics and the state's life-sciences industry.

Major new airport construction, including a new terminal and highway access, is scheduled to be completed next year and has led to explosive growth in Hendricks County to the west. Planners envision an eventual linkage between Interstate 70 and Interstate 65 in Boone County. About 12 miles of that route connecting I70 and Interstate 74 through Plainfield, Avon and Brownsburg has been dubbed the "Ronald Reagan Parkway" and is attracting many transportation and distribution companies.

Another air cargo operation is located in Fort Wayne, where Kitty Hawk Cargo provides scheduled overnight air freight transportation to major locations throughout North America including Canada, Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and Mexico.

By warehouse. The movement of goods through the state is supported by major warehousing operations across Indiana that are also expanding rapidly. An example of that growth is a large warehouse in Plainfield completed by Duke Realty last year and leased to Ozburn-Hessey Logistics. The Plainfield 8 facility sits on 42 acres fronting I-70 and provides 36-foot clear height, 60 dock doors, 28 knockouts, 4 drive-in doors and 50by-50-foot bay spacing.

"Plainfield 8 is a perfect fit for our clients' expansion needs in the Indianapolis market," says Scott McWilliams, CEO of the leading supply chain management services company which operates 2.2 million square feet of warehouse space in the central Indiana market and more than 21 million total square feet in North America.

In northern Indiana, Advance Auto parts just announced a new distribution center in Remington that is expected to create 600 new jobs when it opens next summer. The new 550,000-square-foot facility will be built adjacent to I-65 and will serve the Midwestern stores of the nation's second-largest automotive parts retailer.

"This new, strategically located facility provides us with opportunities to enhance our service to our stores in the Midwest," says Roy Martin, senior vice president of logistics and replenishment. "The new distribution center will help us serve our stores better, shortening our supply lines and saving us valuable time and fuel. In the auto-parts business, speed of delivery is a significant competitive advantage."

Such new logistics business and the creation of jobs can be exciting for small Indiana towns that often have a hard time attracting new business. "We are so elated," says Arnold Shepherd, Remington's town council president. "We've never seen anything like this. The benefits will be limitless for our community."

Copyright Curtis Magazine Group, Inc. Mar 01, 2007 (c) 2007 Indiana Business Magazine. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.