The developer of the $500 million I Port, an industrial and logistics park located on 122 hectares land at Rolleston, Christchurch says the project is attracting strong interest.
“We share a boundary with the Lyttleton Port Company’s (LPC) MidlandPort and conveniently provide direct access to that facility,” says Carter Groups I Port director Tim Carter.
“This is proving a key attraction for a range of potential clients, especially in the logistics and warehousing sectors,” he says.
“Rolleston is now clearly positioned as the key transport hub for not only Canterbury but also the whole of the South Island,” he says.
Carter says the experience of large companies in places such as Auckland, who have channelled their operations through an inland port proves the potential for supply chain efficiencies.
Fisher and Paykel (F&P) found Ports of Auckland inland port in South Auckland provided flexibility with the management of containers on its site, as well as improving container utilisation for the business.
“Previously we had a micro-port onsite,” says F&P’s global logistics project co-ordinator Richard Driver. “But changes to our facility meant we lost the use of that space. The move to the inland port allowed us to remain efficient in our container movements while taking advantage of the other benefits inland ports offer.”
A change in the import/export balance of F&P’s operations brought about by increased offshore production reduced flexibility on the company’s site, and it decided to adopt the Wiri inland port solution. More than 60% of F&P’s freight is now inbound.
“Using the inland port did mean we had to place more emphasis on planning,” Driver says. “The result, though, has been improved container utilisation as well as transport efficiencies,”
Carter says the proximity of I PORT to LPC’s inland port makes staging of containers easier and reduces handling delays.
“To have LPC MidlandPort and the Port of Tauranga’s Metroport facilities alongside I-PORT and iZONE in Rolleston offers efficiency for businesses involved in exporting, importing, logistics, industrial and agriculture,” says Carter.
By late this year MidlandPort will have a road shuttle service to the Lyttelton sea port. Direct rail access to Lyttelton Port, commencing in early 2016, will be a key feature of the MidlandPort service.
“MidlandPort will improve container freight efficiency, travel time, reduce road congestion and costs for our customers,” says LPC chief executive Peter Davie.
It will act as a hub for receiving, storing and consolidating containers and as a distribution point where containers transfer between trucks and trains.”
