Spatiotemporal Dynamics Of Food Cold Chain Logistics In Beijing

The issue of spatiotemporal dynamics for food cold chain logistics (FCCL in short) in Beijing belongs to the cross-sectional research of urban logistics, sptiotemporal problems and regional study. During the development in the past several decades, FCCL in Beijing formed special spatiotemoral dnymics pattern, taking market demand as the direction and leaded by the government. With the enhancement of living standard, the dmand structure for food is changing, the requirement for food security is increasingly risking. As an industry relative to people’s livelihood, FCCL is going to achive faster development. Meanwhile, "urban disease’like traffic jam and air pollution is much worse, some functions that are not included in the planning of Beijing are being scattered out. At the same time, the strategy of integrated development among Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei is being carried out effectively. Considered with all those conditions, there will be new spatiotemporal dynamics pattern for FCCL.More and more research for the spatiotemporal dynamics of logistics has been done by scholars from China and abroad, while this dissertation will focuse on FCCL in Beijing, which will be a powerful supplement for the existing research. In the meantime, research of this thesis is established in Beijing, with the view to the whole Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, which will help a lot to governers and managers to form perception of the spatiotemporal dynamics of FCCL in Beijing in the past several decades, as well as the expectation for the dynamics in the future. This paper will be the reference to government when governers do the planning work, while it will also be the guidance for managers when they choose the place for their firms. Hence, this paper possess theoretical and practical significance.The research questions are relatively wide for the spatiotemporal dynamics of FCCL in Beijing, while the author limits the research scope. First, the process and characteristics of spatiotemporal dynamics for FCCL in Beijing are studied, as well as some simple reasons to the formation of characteristics. Second, the dynamics mechanism and the forecast for the dynamics characteristics are studied. Third, with the consideration for the future dynamics characteristics, stratergies of enterprises and governments are studied. The specific research contents are illustrated as below, with the research method and some creative results:(1) The author analyses the process and charateristics of the spatiotemporal dynamics of FCCL in Beijing with survey data. The author dose the survey for food cold chain enterprises in Beijig at prime tense, then the use of ArcGIS helped to achieve the process of the spatiotemporal dynamics. Kernal density and Standard Deviational Ellipse are used to find out the charateristics of the spatiotemporal dynamics, which are the agglomeration and sprawl. There are some specific features and reasons for agglomeration and sparawl, which are analysed by the author. The findings here forms the first "data map" for the FCCL in Beijing, which also are the remedy and creation to the existing research.(2) The dynamics mechanism for the spatiotemporal pattern of FCCL in Beijing are studied with the use of system dynamics model. The author systematically considers many variables belongs to economic factors, social factors, policy factors, technical factors, facility factors, and operational factors. With the simulation to the spatiotemporal agglomeration, there are some results:with the increasement of GDP per capita, external return to scale, urbanization level, funding, tax preference, the share of facilities and specialization, the agglomeration patter will being formed and developed. While the urban planning will be the control for the degree of agglemration, the penalties for traffic jam and air pollution decrease the degree of agglomeration. With the simulation to the spatiotemporal sprawl of FCCL in Beijing, the results are shown as below. The spatiotemporal sprawl will be enhanced with the increase of GDP per capita, urbanization level, land price of the central city, city planning, penalties to traffic jam and air pollution, financial support and tax preference, traffic accessibility, and the information and web technology. However, the operational consideration from managers like the requirements for VMT and unloaded ratio will decrease the spatiotemporal sprawl in general. The author also finds that the requirements for traffic accessibility, information and web tech, and the claim for VMT and unloaded ratio are the causes to the specifi feature "limited sprawl". The impetuses for the "jumping-out sprawl" are from the increase of land price of the central city, the change of the city planning, the development of information and web tech, the growth of financial support and tax preference, and the penalties to traffic jam and air pollution. While the operational claims for VMT and unloaded ratio from managers cut down the trend of "jumping-out sprawl". The research of this part makes up the blank of the research for spatiotemporal dynamics mechanism of logistics. Based of the mechanism model, the forecast to the spatiotemporal dynamics characteristics of year are achived that the agglomeration will be lighted increased, and the "jumping-out sprawl" will be more and more obvious.(3) Based on the two spatiotemporal dynamics characteristics above, the author studies the process of strategy selection of food cold chain enterprises and the government with the use of evolutionary game theory. According to the findings, during the formation and increase of the agglomeration of FCCL in Beijing, managers should explore more financial support to help the construction of falicilities, enhance the specialization level and the cooperation among companies, and promote the external returns to scale. While, the government should provide more financial support and tax preference to stimulate the agglomeration of FCCL, and formulate rigorous penalty policy to traffic jam and air pollution. However, during the formation and increase of the "jumping-out sprawl"of FCCL in Beijing, managers should foumulate a long-term strategy with a deep and systematic consideration for the industrial base and market potential to the object region. Beijing should be always one of the markets that are served by the "jumping-out" firms. Governers for Beijing, Tianjin, and Hebei should collaborate with each other to the "jumping-out" firms. All governments are going to provide financial support to stimulate the "jumping-out sprawl", especially for the government of Beijing, who should offer tax preference to the jumping-out firms at the same time. To some key enterprises who don’t want to leave Beijing, Beijing government could levy penalties to stimulate the "jumping-out" sprawl. To form a scientific "jumping-out" sprawl pattern, the author also suggest that there should be a gradient structure to all the cities and counties in Hebei and Tianjin.