Zeeland and West Brabant will create additional jobs in the top sector Logistics now that cigarette factory Philip Morris has closed its doors. The closure of Philip Morris left 1170 employees on the street last year. Those employees now need to be relocated, including to logistics companies. To make this possible, the Economic Structure Reinforcement Action Plan was handed over to Economic Affairs Minister Henk Kamp this week.
Intensifying cooperation with major shippers
The action plan was set up by the government and businesses in the region. They want to strengthen the region as a logistics hotspot by focusing on even more efficient services 'across a robust network of different transport modes'. This includes optimising the physical infrastructure. In addition, the parties advocate more intensive cooperation between shippers in the south-western Netherlands and neighbouring regions. A large part of transport still takes place by road today. Companies and especially large shippers (manufacturers, retailers, etc.) are looking for alternatives to road and want to transport more by rail and water. To make this modal shift possible, cooperation, to bundle cargo, is a necessity, according to the action plan. The region is already running the Multimodal Smart Match project and the cooperation project between large shippers in the Zeeuws-Vlaanderen Canal Zone. Stakeholders in the region now want to broaden these projects.
Hundreds of extra jobs
The action plan serves as a sort of acceleration agenda for the region. The focus is not only on the Logistics Top Sector, but also on the Bio-based Economy and Maintenance. Total investment is estimated at tens of millions of euros and is expected to create hundreds of extra jobs.
Editorial LogistiekProfs
