A Resin Supplier Using GPS To Benefit Converters

Track Your Resin While It Rides the Rails

Shell Polymers has conducted more than 1,000 hours worth of interviews with converters.

So we know that unexpected logistical delays and an inability to get timely updates about batches of resin in-transit are common challenges – ones which can harm the bottom line and customer relationships.

If consumers can track their e-commerce purchases with a few mouse clicks, shouldn’t converters be able to do the same for their resin, the lifeblood of their business? We think so. 

That’s why all Shell Polymers’ hopper cars – which will depart from our Storage in Transit (SIT) Yard loaded with resin and bound for converter facilities – are equipped with GPS technology.

We’re the first in the polyethylene industry to make this investment, which offers many benefits.
Converters will be able to track their resin as it rides the rails, using our Customer Hub. Shell’s team will also be keeping tabs, so that we can notify converters as quickly as possible about any delays that might arise.

Early detection, coupled with our plant’s strategic location and dual-modality logistics approach, is one of the many ways a polyethylene supplier can help converters minimize disruptions and downtime.

For example, if a train is waylaid by mechanical issues or rail congestion, Shell could arrange to send trucks, where possible, to transport replacement resin. 

A Good Resin Supplier Always Offers Logistics Options

Our polyethylene plant’s strategic location – close to major railways and within 700 miles of the majority of North American polyethylene buyers – is an important strategy for reducing shipment delays.

Even so, Shell Polymers isn’t putting all our eggs in one basket. That’s why we’ve also invested in our trucking capabilities. 

Our trucks can be loaded fast, in just 15 to 20 minutes, thanks to silo top-loading infrastructure located next to the plant’s reactors.

While trucks can act as a Plan B transport option in the event of rail delays, they aren’t always the back-up option. In fact, for converters within a certain proximity to our plant, trucked resin shipments may be the fastest and most efficient delivery method.

Whichever transport option a converter chooses, having a choice creates logistical flexibility that helps increase supply reliability and converter peace of mind.

Purposeful in Pennsylvania

Our new polyethylene plant is designed to meet converter needs for a reliable supply of quality resin, as well as testing services and more.

We selected and designed our equipment and processes purposefully, informed by converter feedback.

The decision to site the plant in a convenient Northeast location was just as deliberate, aimed at reducing supply disruptions.

Strategically proximate to many North American polyethylene buyers, the Monaca site provides additional clarity on delivery to converters, many of which are seeking to diversify their resin supply chains in the wake of disruptive weather events, material shortages, and other logistics challenges over the past few years.