LOCATING A FREIGHT CONSOLIDATION CENTRE IN PORTSMOUTH, UK

Abstract

This research presents a scientific approach for selecting a suitable location for a Freight Consolidation Centre (FCC) in the city of Portsmouth, UK, on the south coast of England.  A detailed review was carried out of a number of different types of FCC across the UK, including their size, terms of use, operator and initial funding stream.  After a discussion of the methodologies used, a review of the unique characteristics of the city of Portsmouth and its current and future developments was outlined with a number of potential FCC sites identified.  A questionnaire was developed and conducted amongst experts in industry in order to indentify the important criteria.  The Analytic Hierachy Process (AHP) was then used to quantify these criteria based on the responses received.  Expert Choice decision making software was then used for the implementation of the Multi Criteria Decision making (MCDM) methodology of AHP to provide a score for each potential location.  The research initially identified the most important site-selection criterion and its implementation in Portsmouth, which was achieved by aggregating questionnaire responses.  This enabled selection of the most suitable site, with respect to the defined criteria.  Recommendations based on the outcomes of the study were made, have critically examined, compared and contrasted them with the literature.  Finally, the proposed location in Portsmouth could be examined more as a good location for such an FCC, while the other locations can provide alternatives options.