The thesis investigates the development of short-sea shipping (SSS) in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region by studying the determinants of SSS, the stated choice preference of shippers and freight forwarders and the stated intentions of maritime carriers for SSS. It is purported the introduction of SSS in SADC could reduce socio-environmental problems currently faced such as road damage, road congestion, pollution and transport related accidents. Discrete choice modeling (DCM) is employed as the main methodology to study shipper and carrier behavior. Discrete choice modeling permits the construction of general utility functions incorporating various decision maker characteristics and choice attributes to elicit preference of respondents. The general postulate in DCM is that utility is derived from the properties of things rather than the actual thing per se. A particular benefit of DCM in this study is the elicitation of preference for services and interventions that have not been introduced by SSS. The first step in the study is a theoretical investigation of the potential of SSS in the SADC region. It highlights the policy initiatives, the barriers and enablers related to the development of SSS. The proposed SSS system would have three main roles: to offer an alternative mode of freight transport service between port cities, to serve as the main leg in an intermodal transport network, and to serve feeder services between hub-and-spoke ports. The findings reveal that, SSS has the theoretical potential to work in the SADC region, given the large geographic region, projected freight volumes and customs and trade policies the SADC region is pursuing. The second step in the study involves an a-priori study conducted to develop a general understanding of freight transport in SADC. For this purpose, a uniquely developed online survey was conducted across the SADC region to ascertain in particular: who the decision maker is in terms of freight mode choice; and what the significant attributes that influence freight mode choice are. The results reveal that both the shipper and the freight forwarder are involved in mode choice decisions, however the shipper being the dominant decision maker. Furthermore, the results of the exploded logit model reveal that the top five modal attributes that shippers consider most important are: reliability, transport cost, risk of damage, frequency of service and transit time. These results were subsequently employed to inform the shipper and carrier behavior studies. The third step entails the assessment of shipper behavior, where trip specific mode choice decisions are studied along five intra-urban origin-destination (O-D) paired routes (which would form the study corridors). Three of these corridors considered unimodal SSS, and the two considered intermodal SSS. Unimodal SSS was studied along the following corridors: Cape Town (South Africa)~ Walvis Bay (Namibia), Walvis Bay (Namibia) ~ Luanda (Angola) and Durban (South Africa) ~Beira (Mozambique); and intermodal SSS was studied along the following corridors: Durban (South Africa) ~ Harare (Zimbabwe) and Cape Town (South Africa) ~ Windhoek (Namibia). To develop the choice scenarios, d-efficient stated choice experiments were uniquely developed for each of the corridors with the following key modal attributes systematically varied and analyzed across respondents: service frequency, reliability in terms of arriving on time, expected delay, transport cost and transport time. Subsequently, the following choice models were developed: Binary Logit, Mixed Logit and Integrated Choice and Latent Variable Structure models for the unimodal corridors; and Multinomial Logit, Nested Logit and Cross Nested Logit models for the intermodal corridors. The results highlight that in addition to the modal attributes, mode choice decisions are driven by shipper characteristics and situational characteristics. Moreover, the unimodal SSS study reveals that underlying latent perceptions also influence freight mode choice decisions; while the intermodal SSS study reveal strong correlations in the intermodal SSS alternatives, which requires improved intermodal capability if SSS is to become competitive. The fourth step in the study entail the assessment of maritime carriers preference for SSS given varying levels of maritime conditions that include: dedicated freight volumes, income from freight, port dues discount, terminal handling fees discount and ship registration requirements. The results of an ordered logit model reveal that ship registration provisions and terminal handling charges are the most important to the development of SSS from a carrier side. Moreover, ship registration and maritime cabotage provisions require visitation to boost the participation of carriers in SSS. The last step of the study revisits the modeling results and considers their implications through the estimation of willingness-to-pay and attribute elasticities. The results were then employed to suggest policy actions and interventions to develop SSS.

Temperature and relative humidity of produce throughout the cold chain can greatly affect the quality and safety of the food product. Different packaging systems or containers can provide better cooling environments for food products that could decrease temperature abuse and ultimately safety risks. In this study we compiled temperature and relative humidity profiles of broccoli packed in different shipping containers throughout the produce supply chain. The shipping containers looked at were the wax corrugated box, reusable plastic containers (RPC), and Eco Pack Green Box with and without a lid. Large differences were seen in the temperature profiles of each package during the first 15 hours of the cold chain with the wax-corrugated boxes showing the slowest rate of cooling. Growth rates of Salmonella sp. and Listeria monocytogeneson broccoli at different temperatures were also determined. Salmonella sp.showed a greater ability to grow on inoculated broccoli than Listeria monocytogenesduring higher temperatures such as 20° C and 37° C. Temperature profiles along with microbial counts from produce lots have been previously recorded; this is the first study to record temperature and relative humidity profiles in conjunction with bacterial growth data of lab inoculated produce.

The essence of this diploma work is to find suitable alternatives to the current situation in the river sightseeing vessels. The aim is to design an object that would offer passengers an adequate and attractive environment where they would spend their free time and which would also be appropriate supplement to the place where this vessel is located.

Le transport intérieur de marchandises de l’Union européenne (UE) se caractérise par la domination du transport routier. En tant que mode le plus utilisé, le transport routier génère les coûts externes les plus considérables. Il est le responsable principal de la congestion routière et des émissions de CO2 qui sont les deux problèmes majeurs du système européen de transport de marchandises. Pour lutter contre ces deux problèmes, l’UE investit des fonds publics dédiés à la construction de nouvelles infrastructures afin d’augmenter leur capacité et de répondre à la demande de transport. De plus, elle favorise les solutions permettant d’alléger les trafics routiers comme le transfert modal d’une partie du trafic routier saturé vers d’autres modes moins polluants. Dans ce contexte, l’UE a promu les autoroutes de la mer (AdM). Nous avons analysé le contexte de développement des AdM, leur positionnement dans le système de transport et leur perspective de développement dans l’UE pour clarifier leur concept et étayer leur pertinence. En effet, pour répondre aux objectifs de l’UE de l’éliminer la congestion routière et de réduire les émissions de CO2, les AdM sont développées pour diminuer le trafic des poids lourds circulant sur les routes. Dans ce cas, la technique du navire roulier permettant de transporter des poids lourds semble adaptée. Les AdM constituent un nouveau parcours pour la construction d’itinéraire d’acheminement des marchandises des transporteurs routiers. Elles offrent une solution moins couteuse que le « tout routier ». En utilisant les AdM, les transporteurs routiers peuvent réduire les émissions de CO2 dues à leur activité grâce à la diminution de la distance routière parcourue. Ainsi, les AdM constituent un mode de transport complémentaire du transport routier. Dans le cadre de la France, les trafics routiers de marchandises se composent d’une part important des flux de transit. De plus, à cause des obstacles naturels à la frontière tels que les Pyrénées, les Alpes et la Manche, les flux de transit se concentrent sur deux axes routiers principaux : l’un, du nord au sud de la France et l’autre, à bord de la Méditerranée. En favorisant le transfert modal de la route vers la mer, la mise en œuvre des AdM permet d’alléger les trafics sur ces axes. Dans ce contexte opérationnel, les ports jouent ainsi un rôle important. Situé au nord de la France, le port du Havre serait impliqué pour alléger le trafic routier du nord au sud de la France. Ainsi, nous avons étudié le cas du port du Havre pour évaluer la possibilité de ce transfert modal. / The inland freight transport in the European Union is characterized by the domination of road transport. As the most used, road transport generates the most significant external costs. It is primarily responsible for traffic congestion and CO2 emissions which are the two major problems of the European system of freight transport. To fight against these problems, the EU invests public funds dedicated to the construction of new infrastructure to increase capacity and meet the demand for transport. In addition, it promotes solutions to alleviate road traffic as a modal shift from road traffic saturated to less polluting modes. In this context, the EU has promoted the motorways of the sea (MoS). We analyzed the development context MoS, their position in the transportation system and development prospect in the European Union to clarify its concept and its relevance. In order to meet the objectives of the EU to eliminate congestion and reduce CO2 emissions, MoS are developed to reduce the heavy vehicle driven on the road. In this case, the technique of rollon/ roll-off to carry heavy weight seems appropriate. MoS are new routes for the construction of routings goods hauliers. They offer a less expensive than the "all roads" solution. Using MoS, hauliers can reduce CO2 emissions thank to reducing the roadway travel. For this reason, the MoS are a complementary mode of road transport. In France, road freight traffic accounts for a large number of transit flows. Also, the number of border crossings is limited due to natural barriers of the Pyrenees, the Alps and the English Channel. Congestion is therefore serious on two main roads: one from north to south of France and the other go along the Mediterranean Sea. Promoting modal shift from road to sea by the implementation of MoS, part of the traffic of these axes and points of saturated transition could be carried over the sea. Ports thus play an important role to make the shift from land to sea. Located in northern France, the port of Le Havre can be involved to ease the traffic from north to south of France. We studied the case of the port of Le Havre to assess the feasibility of this modal shift.

Climate change has recently received more attention in the shipping sector. This is mainly due to a growing demand for reduced global emissions and the fact that shipping is one of the fastest growing sectors in terms of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In parallel, ports have started to introduce programmes and policies to address these emissions. This study aims at quantifying potential reductions of ships' emissions of GHG from efforts implemented by ports. Building on a model that calculates GHG emissions from ships in various scenarios for individual ports, different kinds of measures for emission reductions are investigated for diverse types of vessels and parts of the port area. A case study of the ship traffic to the Port of Gothenburg is performed. Projections of ship emissions in the port area for 2030 are made, and three scenarios, ‘1. Alternative fuel’, ‘2. Ship design’ and ‘3. Operation’, are analysed. These scenarios are related to a business as usual development. GHG emissions from ships in the port are projected to increase by 40% to 2030 in a business as usual (BAU) scenario. The highest reductions were seen in the ‘Operation’ scenario where GHG emissions were 10% lower than the BAU level.

I detta examensarbete genomförs en omfattande analys om hur prissättningsstrategier tillämpas inom sjöfraktindustrin. Denna bransch har en nyckelfunktion i världens globala försörjningskedjor och spelar en viktig roll i världsekonomin. Trots det präglas industrin av låga vinstmarginaler samt höga kostnader och påtaglig konkurrens. Syftet med studien är således att analysera hur prissättningsstrategier kan hantera kostnadsproblematiken och skapa positiva ekonomiska effekter för aktörer inom industrin. Därefter introduceras en konceptuell strategi som förslag på ytterligare intäktsoptimering relaterat till avbokningsproblematik. Denna strategi bygger på en dynamisk avbokningsavgift som baseras på fraktpris och säsongsindikatorer. Modellen testas och analyseras för att undersöka dess ekonomiska effekter. Studien genomförs med en kvalitativ forskningsmetod där respondenter från två internationella rederier med filialer i Sverige intervjuas; CMA-CGM och Maersk. Detta för att få en inblick över hur kostnadsproblematiken ter sig i verkligheten och hur prissättningsstrategier kan hantera den. Slutsatserna av studien är att de två företag som jämförts använder sig av befintliga strategier för att kunna hantera den kostnadsproblematik som ständigt förekommer inom sjöfrakten. Dessa strategier innefattar områden som; utrymmesutnyttjande, allokering baserat på kundkategorier samt överbokning. För att skapa ekonomiska fördelar utvärderas dessa strategier kontinuerligt för att företagen ska kunna uppnå maximal vinst. Det är även av största vikt att företagen är flexibla i den utsträckning som tillåts då marknaden präglas av kraftig konkurrens. Genom att använda centrala delar av de befintliga strategierna har en konceptuell modell tagits fram som potentiellt sett kan öka företagets intäkter vid avbokningar. / In this bachelor thesis, a comprehensive analysis of how pricing strategies are applied in the sea freight industry is carried out. This industry has a key function in the world's global supply chains and plays an important role in the world economy. Despite this, the industry is characterized by low profit margins as well as high costs and considerable competition. The aim of the study is thus to analyze how pricing strategies can deal with the cost problem and create positive economic effects for actors in the industry. Subsequently, a conceptual strategy is introduced as a proposal for further revenue optimization related to cancellation problems. This strategy is based on a dynamic cancellation fee based on freight prices and seasonal indicators. The model is tested and analyzed to investigate its economic effects. The study is carried out with a qualitative research method in which respondents from two international shipping companies with branches in Sweden are being interviewed; CMA-CGM and Maersk. This is to gain an insight into how the cost problem appears in reality and how pricing strategies can handle it. The conclusions of the study are that the two companies that have been compared are using existing strategies to deal with the cost problems that constantly occur in sea freight. These strategies include areas such as; space utilization, allocation based on customer categories and over booking. In order to generate economic benefits, these strategies are continuously evaluated in order for companies to achieve maximum profit. It is also of the utmost importance that companies are flexible to the extent that is permissible since the market is characterized by strong competition. By using central parts of the existing strategies, a conceptual model has been developed that potentially can increase the company's revenues linked to cancellations.

Ship exhausts contain high levels of sulphur oxides, nitrogen oxides, carbon dioxide and particles dueto the heavy fuel oil, HFO, used for combustion and the combustion characteristics of the engine.As a result of upcoming stricter regulations for shipping pollution, as well as growing attentionto greenhouse gas emissions, air pollution and uncertainty of future petroleum oil supply, a shifttowards a cleaner burning fuel is needed.This work explores potential alternative fuels, both conventional and unconventional, and abatementtechnologies, to be used by tankers in the worldwide spot market to comply with upcomingenvironmental regulations in the near and coming future. As a reference the product tanker M/TGotland Marieann is used and recommendations for which fuel that shall be used by the referenceship in 2015 and 2020 are presented.The environmental assessment and evaluation of the fuels are done from a life cycle perspective usingresults from Life Cycle Assessment, LCA, studies.This study illustrates that, of the various alternatives, methanol appears to be the best candidatefor long-term, widespread replacement of petroleum-based fuels within tanker shipping. It does notemit any sulphur oxides nor particles and the nitrogen oxides are shown to be lower than those ofmarine gas oil, MGO. The global warming potential of the natural gas produced methanol is notlower than that of MGO, but when gradually switching to bio-methanol the greenhouse gas emissionsare decreasing and with methanol the vision of a carbon free society can be reached.For 2015 a switch towards methanol is not seen as realistic. Further research and establishment ofregulations and distribution systems are needed, however there are indications that a shift will bepossible sometime between 2015 and 2020. For 2015 a shift towards MGO is suggested as it involveslow investment costs and there is no need for infrastructure changes. As MGO is more expensivethan methanol, a shift is preferable as soon as the market, technology and infrastructure are ready.

In the business of packaging engineering, a large consumption of time is placed on evaluating new materials to provide cost savings to a company. This evaluation is made by using test methods such as those found in ASTM D4169-16, which helps to simulate shipping and distribution conditions. A key problem is that this test method can take up to multiple months, and sometimes years to complete. The apparatus created in this study allows for a comparison to be made between currently used films and prospective films in approximately ten hours. This allows for a prescreening of new films to be done before completing full ASTM shipment and distribution testing.This study focuses on coextruded multilayer polymer films and the damage brought upon them in forms of puncture and abrasion through shipment and distribution.

Denna studie visar en tolkning av begreppet hållbar utveckling samtidigt som den konkretiseras i den specifika fartygsverksamheten. Detta examensarbete skall fungera som underlag till en utbildning som har som syfte att få befälsnivån att arbeta mot en mer hållbar utveckling. I samband med utbildningen är det viktigt att komma ihåg att målet är att öka medvetenheten hos befälsnivån så att risken minimeras för att de fattar dåliga beslut. Målet är även att befälsnivån skall känna att de har bättre verktyg än före utbildningen för att arbeta mot en mer hållbar utveckling. Det är viktigt att befälsnivån får med sig förståelsen för hur de tre dimensionerna ekologi, ekonomi och sociala aspekter hänger samman. Befälsnivån skall ha förståelse för att hållbar utveckling är uppnådd när förbättringar i en dimension också leder till förbättringar i en annan dimension (SOU 2004:104). Befälsnivån skall ansvarfullt inse att den ekologiska bärkraften är viktigast för allt liv och därmed också inse att om exempelvis ekonomisk tillväxt är baserad på en produktion som är mindre miljöanpassad än tidigare alternativ så är utvecklingen inte hållbar. För att få befälsnivån att arbeta mot en mer hållbar utveckling har alla tre dimensioner sina egna drivkrafter som skall uppmärksammas före beslut om förändring. Det ekologiska är givet, då vi är beroende av vår miljö, det sociala kan vara allt från påtryckningar från ledningen till krav från arbetskamrater och kunder. De ekonomiska drivkrafterna kan i sin tur också vara många där styrmedel är det mest framträdande. Det har dock visat sig att exempelvis miljöåtgärder som innebär ekonomisk vinning inte behöver formell styrning. Denna självreglering leder till att verksamheten själv önskar att initiera åtgärder till förmån för hållbar utveckling. I denna studie framhävs därmed också betydelsen av utbildningen och betydelsen av utbildningens innehåll ur en pedagogisk synvinkel. I rapporten påpekas också vikten av att ledningen är den som skall se till att de anställda har rätta verktygen för att genomföra förändringar och utvecklas. Det bör dock noteras att i samband med färskvattenförbrukningens minskning har inte hänsyn tagits till kundernas beteende. En tydligare kartläggning av de olika kundsegmentens vattenförbrukning är en bra framtida studiemöjlighet. För att upprätthålla arbetet mot en mer hållbar utveckling är det av ytterst vikt att en processmodell där utvärdering anses spela en viktig roll finns att tillgå. För minskning av färskvattenförbrukning presenteras en åtgärdsplan samt andra förslag som utbyte av exempelvis duschmunstycken som på längre sikt kan leda till en större minskning av färskvattenförbrukningen. / This study’s main goal is to help the ship management to work towards a more sustainable development by introducing the concept in, for the shipping business, concrete concept. It is also of importance to remember that the goal with this educational training is not to create a perfect person, but to increase the ship management’s awareness to minimize the risk of bad decisions based on lack of knowledge. It is of importance that the ship management increases their knowledge of the significance of the three dimensions ecology, economics and social aspects. The ship management tools for working towards a more sustainable development is hoped to increase by giving them better understanding for the fact that an improvement of one of the dimensions may lead to an improvement of the others (SOU 2004:104). The ship management is meant to realize that the ecological capacity being the most important for life a development cannot be sustainable if the economic growth is less environmentally adjusted than necessary. In working towards a sustainable development it is of great importance that all the dimensions´ driving forces are given attention before making a decision. The ecological dimension is given, us being depended of the environment, the social aspect is anything between the managements demands and customers inquiry. The economical aspects are many, but the different governments’ mean of control may be the most important, although it has been shown that environmental improvements also giving an economical profit are done without external control. This regulation made by the company indicates that the company is willing to make measures towards are more sustainable development. This study will also highlight the pedagogical aspects when teaching about sustainable development. In conclusion the importance of the managements´ devotion to make sure that the employees have the tools to work towards solutions based on sustainable development is found. The importance of making sustainable development concrete by using freshwater consumption as an example is also stated. Finally, to be able to work towards more sustainable development and to uphold the quality it is of great importance that there is a project plan where follow-up and feedback are essential. This study also introduces a package of measure for the freshwater reduction onboard the ships among other recommended measures such as changing the showers mouthpieces. It is of great importance that the measures made will lead to the long-term sustainable development that will be required.

Sales are central to retail companies. One of the main problems for these companies is when products are sold later than expected, causing overstock due to lower inventory turnover, which increases inventory levels. Therefore, for many retailers, it is important to solve this problem. This is mostly applicable to companies engaged in sales; however, if we take into account the main supplier and the way they act within the supply chain, we must also consider an additional approach. Since online sales are a major innovation brought about by the new digital era, it is standard for sales strategies to focus on this new requirement of customers. In this way, the main supplier takes a leap forward on Internet sales, creating another sales channel. This is when companies under the supply chain start losing sales. According to the above, a dual supply chain model was suggested using the SCOR model and drop shipping. After the improvement proposal was implemented, the company reported a reduction of approximately S/13,000 when comparing the first quarter of 2018 to that of 2019.