Assessing the cost competitiveness of a cargo airship for freight re-supply in isolated regions in northern Canada

• Main Author: Adaman, Matthew
• Other Authors: Prentice, Barry (Supply Chain Management), McLachlin, Ron (Supply Chain Management) Regehr, Jonathan (Civil Engineering)
• Format: Master Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: 2013
• Subjects: Cargo airship; northern transportation; Canada; Nunavut; Kivalliq
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1993/22235

The East Side of Lake Winnipeg, North Western Ontario, and the Kivalliq region in Central Nunavut are selected as case regions in which the cost competitiveness of the cargo airship can be estimated. Data from the North West Company that describes freight movements and associated costs are used in this comparative analysis. A cargo airship developer provided operating cost data that are operationalized using the North West Company’s data. Results show that using a cargo airship could produce annual transportation cost savings of between 12.5% and 38.3% per year. These results are similar across all three regions and vary based on the scenario modelled within each case region. The findings from this research are subject to the assumptions that the operating cost model described by the cargo airship developer is accurate, and is limited in scope because it focuses solely on one company’s shipping needs in select regions. February 2014