NELS will be a sponsor of the fall session of the North East Association of Rail Shippers (NEARS), to be held in State College, PA between September 30th and October 2nd.  For more information on the event, visit http://www.nears.org/

Jenna Bernabe, Customer Solutions Manager for NELS will be attending as well as Dwight Price who has been a consultant to NELS on a recent customer engagement.  Both will be on hand and look forward to meeting with other attendees.

At NEARS spring conference, Richard Flynn, NELS founder and President addressed the gathering on the topic: "Meeting the Challenges of Growth" .  That presentation included eye-opening informaion on the deterioration of service within the merchandise rail network nationally, including specific examples and offering perspectives on the challenges the rail carriers face in remedying them.

If you would like to see a PDF version, click on the following link: View a PDF of Richard Flynn's NEARS Conference Presentation

Commenting on the recent Senate Hearings on freight-rail service conducted by the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, Richard Flynn commented that: "Clearly the railroads were not prepared for the increased volume on the rail network.  Much needs to be done, particularly with respect to the hand-offs between carriers." 

"While each Class I Railroad looks to optimize its individual network and assets, without coordination, the effect can be to sub-optimize the overall network, as reflected in the poor dock-to-dock performance metrics that we produce through our RAILS™ system."   

With intense focus on Crude By Rail Cost Capacity and Constraints, NELS President, Richard Flynn, articulated strategies to address the issues collaboratively with partners upstream and downstream in the supply chain.

NELS is actively involved in addressing service and capacity issues while also evaluating risks associated with the transport of HazMat via rail, on specific properties and routes. NELS also has an extensive proprietary library of rail network data, operates its own on-site secure, data center and provides web-based delivery capabilities.  NELS RAILS™ platform with integrated GIS capabilities, provides extensive geographically-based, empirical information on the North American Rail Network.

NELS key differentiator is its extensive industry experience coupled with proprietary analytical tools and deep knowledge of transportation data and systems. NELS insights and application of our tools as part of engagements, has enabled our clients to improve operational performance, better manage transportation assets, reduce costs and make informed decisions under the track, on the track, adjacent to the track.  NELS model provides localized risk factor scores and prioritizes risk items based on weighting of each risk component.  

For a copy of our presentation "Partnering Along The Crude By Rail Value Chain"  or to learn more specifics about how NELS can help reduce costs and proactively address service constraints, send us an e-mail at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call us at 617-418-3570

With extensive experience in the monitoring and routing of hazardous materials, NELS is developing additional capabilities to assess the risks related to the transport of CBR.

NELS President Richard Flynn will be a featured speaker at Progressive Railroading's "Secure Rail" Conference to be held in Orlando, Florida, February 3-4, 2015.

Secure Rail is the first conference that addresses North American rail security from an organizational perspective. Conference sessions will feature strategies and insights from industry experts on how to manage employees, passengers, technology and assets, and protect them from man-made threats and dangers.

Conference topics include: Bridge and Tunnel Security, Disaster Planning, Business Continuity, Emergency Preparedness, Hazmat Transport, IT Security, Port Security, Surveillance and Cyber Security and TSA Assessments.

NELS will be highlighting its experience assisting with the proactive management of rail security sensitive materials (RSSM) Toxic Inhalants, Poisons and Explosives regulated under OT-55 and showing how its experience can be applied to the challenges of handling Crude By Rail (CBR).

RAILS™ CAN NOW ASSESS DEMURRAGE CHARGES AND OTHER ASSESSORIAL COSTS

(Framingham, Massachusetts) – NorthEast Logistics Systems announces a major upgrade to RAILS™, their comprehensive Rail Asset Integrated Logistics System.  In addition to existing advanced service management capabilities, RAILS now supports the analysis of demurrage and other assessorial charges and can relate these charges to specific service cycles and facilities.

"Working with one of our clients, we zeroed in on the cumbersome and time-consuming reconciliation process that many shippers and receivers encounter." said, Richard Flynn, NELS President.  "Our approach goes beyond verification of charges by identifying approaches to reduce demurrage exposure."

RAILS™ is a cloud-based software suite providing rail shippers, fleet managers and rail carriers with advanced analytical and visualization tools to improve freight car velocity, isolate recurring points of delay and accurately forecast delivery and interchange windows.

“A key differentiator of RAILS™ has been its ability to integrate disparate real-time data direct from rail carriers, 3PL's and from existing tracking systems with ease” said Richard Flynn, President of NorthEast Logistics Systems, LLC (NELS). The RAILS™ suite is easy to deploy and can be soft-coupled to existing TMS Systems via the cloud. RAILS™ integrates conventional CLM and AEI tracking with GPS and GIS visualization.

“Users can literally see, via interactive map, chart or graph, exactly where problems are occurring.” said Flynn.  "Now we add the management of demurrage and other assessorial costs to our capabilities."

RAILS™ includes a number of modules geared to analyzing and optimizing different aspects of rail operations.

For more information about NELS, call (617) 418-3570, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. , or go to www.nels.us.com