Planes, Trains, Automobiles, and Boats: A Guide to Location Analysis

Location analysis typically starts with business considerations; things like what matters to the business and its clientele. Does your business need to be close to a primary supplier? Do you need to be located near other businesses associated with leisure or quality of life? Transportation is often a key factor in location analysis because it’s so important for the operation and viability of business. Transportation and accessibility are huge factors for a business. 

Take Amazon, for example. If they want to open up a warehouse and shipping facility, location analysis is needed to ensure they are somewhere with access to major highways to make quick delivery an option. Proximity to airports is also ideal for the sake of shipping times.

Amazon is an extreme example, since the majority of their business involves shipping. For other companies, deliveries might be less of a concern. Regardless of what your business is, deliverability and accessibility should play a role in location analysis. Even working remotely, there will be the occasional package or piece of mail that needs to make its way to you or from you. 

Some businesses require shipping capacity to be greater than what can be realistically done by way of tractor-trailer. Raw materials, such as metals or coal, are typically shipped by freight train because of their weight and the quantity in which they are shipped long distances. Rail transport may not offer the same flexibility that highways and roadways offer, but it is very energy efficient and economical for shipping long distances. 

Sheer capacity for transport and the low environmental impact make shipping via cargo ship a very economical method for shipping. The drawback to using cargo ships is in the timing. Shipping internationally takes longer when using water, rather than air, but it’s much cheaper by way of water. Cars are among the most popular goods shipped by water, but the industry is widespread and prevalent. 

Location analysis is important when determining what your business’s needs and abilities are for transportation. Your employees, your supplies, and your goods rely on the accessibility of your company. Some locations will have fewer options than others but if you plan well, you might find places like Currituck County that are centrally located for most any form of transportation. Our businesses feel spoiled by their abundance of freight options.