Kia taps Cordele Intermodal Services to handle Georgia parts shipments

Under the new partnership, the state’s first inland terminal will handle up to 30,000 TEUs annually for Kia Motor Manufacturing Georgia to supply the automobile manufacturer’s plant in West Point, according to a statement from Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal.    A subsidiary of Kia Motors Corp. has selected Cordele Intermodal Services to handle its parts shipments in Georgia, according to a statement from Gov. Nathan Deal.
   Under the new partnership, the state’s first inland terminal will handle up to 30,000 TEUs annually for Kia Motor Manufacturing Georgia (KMMG) to supply the automobile manufacturer’s plant in West Point.
   KMMG will transport auto parts via rail from the Port of Savannah to the inland terminal in Cordele and on to the West Point facility via truck, as opposed to using motor carriers to transport containers the whole way from Savannah to West Point. Deal said the partnership is expected to save over 6 million truck miles per year in Georgia.
   The automobile manufacturer currently employs over 3,000 workers at the West Point location, and officials estimate that together with local suppliers, Kia has created more than 15,000 jobs in the area. Following a $100 million expansion project in 2011, the plant has a production capacity of 360,000 vehicles per year.
   The Georgia Ports Authority (GPA) Board of Directors, in conjunction with the state of Georgia, on July 22 approved $19.7 million to fund the state’s second inland terminal, the Appalachian Regional Port in Murray County.
   Cordele Inland Terminal, which is served by short line rail providers, currently operates on 40 acres with an option to expand on additional available land nearby and was recently designated as an official container yard by shipping lines Maersk, NYK, CMA-CGM, MSC and ZIM. Service areas include southwest Georgia, southern Alabama and western Florida.
   “Kia has been a remarkably successful economic driver for West Point and Georgia’s inland terminals provide a new efficient way for companies to transport goods throughout the state,” said Deal. “This partnership and use of the inland port will reduce congestion on our highways and lower transportation costs, using new infrastructure to benefit both companies and the West Point area. The inland rail yards enable Georgia companies to grow to meet the demands of the Southeastern states, while bolstering economic development across the state.”
   “Working with our state partners, as well as our suppliers, in this way not only benefits KMMG, but also increases efficiency, which adds value to the end product, ultimately benefiting our customers,” added Stuart C. Countess, chief administrative officer at KMMG. “We see this as another example of our company philosophy of continuous improvement.”
   “There is a direct cost savings to the importer,” said CIS President Jonathan Lafevers. “Furthermore, storage and handling fees are reduced or completely eliminated by utilizing Cordele as the origin and destination location for the containers.”
   “Cargo can be loaded onto trains, moving hundreds of containers in a single trip, staged at an intermodal yard, then trucked for much shorter distances,” said GPA Executive Director Griff Lynch. “This model drives out waste and redundancy in the supply chain, delivering greater efficiency for customers and environmental benefits through reduced diesel consumption.”