This paper describes the approach and preliminary results of the Trilateral Logistics - Europe (TRILOG) project, which is currently being conducted for the EU's Directorate General Transport (DG VII). The project's main goal is to offer policy makers concepts and comparable indicators in the areas of supply chain management (SCM) and international intermodal freight transport, in order to exchange experience between Europe, North America, and the Asia-Pacific area. The project focuses on developments in Europe, and uses a mixture of research methods. Its three main aspects are trends in global logistics, policy actions, and the evaluation of logistics systems. Global trends are addressed by means of a Pan-European Delphi survey among key experts. Emerging regional and sectoral issues are investigated by statistical analysis and case studies in selected sectors. Consideration is given to current policy actions, and to opportunities for policy makers to influence global supply chains in the future. The paper discusses some implications for intermodal transport of the shift of the current focus of business improvement from logistics to SCM. The role of policy makers is assessed in relation to urgent intermodal transport issues, new intervention mechanisms, and stimulating SCM as a new policy instrument.
Abstract