The rail network plays a crucial role in logistics in Germany. But how can we make optimal use of the rail network even under exceptional conditions, such as unforeseen disruptions, natural disasters, or a sudden surge in demand? Can cooperation between the individual players help to make the best possible use of capacity, even at short notice?

We explored these questions together with IABG and TX Logistik in a workshop. The aim was to bring together perspectives from research, business, and military security in order to not only highlight the specific requirements and opportunities of each area, but also to jointly develop solutions for how we can use rail as critical infrastructure in a cooperative and sustainable manner.

A particular focus lay on the resilience of rail utilization: only a resilient system can respond flexibly to unforeseen events, cushion disruptions, and remain efficient in the long term.

Together with the participants, we discussed …

• how a standardized procedure or emergency plan can help to respond better to disruptions in intermodal transport.
• what challenges exist in today's logistics solutions that could be overcome more efficiently by rail transport.
• how digitalization can help to overcome disruptions in the transport network.

Find out here how we can make the infrastructure for intermodal freight transport as flexible and reliable as possible and how we can promote data availability and communication between the individual players.

A big thank you to Ren Kajiyama for his insights into the research perspective on how resilience can be achieved in intermodal freight transport. Thanks also to Sebastian Ruckes for his solutions in rail freight transport for a resilient and efficient supply chain, and to IABG for its perspective from the field of military security.