Prof. Alan McKinnon MA (Aberdeen) MA (British Columbia) PhD (London)

Alan has undertaken research on many different aspects of logistics. His PhD, undertaken at University College London, analysed the spatial structure of food distribution systems. Since then he has published extensively on topics such as retail logistics, freight transport management and policy, the environmental impact of logistics, outsourcing, supply chain trends, the logistics of online retailing, warehousing and the links between logistics and economic development. In recent years he has been involved in major studies examining the case for increasing maximum truck size and weight, road user charging for trucks, the impact of traffic congestion on the reliability of supply chains and opportunities for cutting CO2 emissions from freight transport.

Alan has undertaken research and consultancy studies for numerous public and private sector organisations in the UK and overseas and been an adviser to several UK government departments, UK and Scottish parliamentary committees, the European Commission, European Conference of Ministers of Transport, International Energy Agency and OECD. He was chairman of the UK government’s Retail Logistics Task Force between 2000 and 2002 and been a member of its Freight and Logistics Research Group since 2003. He also belongs to the National Council of the Freight Transport Association.

Between 1990 and 1996 he was European Editor of the International Journal of Physical Distribution and Logistics Management. He is currently a member of the editorial board of this and six other journals, including the Journal of Business Logistics and International Journal of Logistics: Research and Applications.

Articles in Refereed Journals:

McKinnon, A.C. (2010) ‘Green Logistics: the Carbon Agenda’ LogForum, vol. 6, no.3
(can be downloaded from:  http://www.logforum.net/pdf/6_3_1_10.pdf)

Liu, X., Grant, D.B., McKinnon, A.C. and Feng, Y. (2010) ‘Empirical Examination of the Contribution of Capabilities to the Competitiveness of Logistics Service Providers: a Perspective from China’ International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management, vol. 40, no.10.

Piecyk, M. and McKinnon, A.C. (2010) ‘Forecasting the Carbon Footprint of Road Freight Transport in 2020’  International Journal of Production Economics, vol. 128, pp31-42
Xing,Y., Grant, D., McKinnon, A.C. and Fernie, J. (2010) ‘Physical Distribution Service Quality in Online Retailing’ International Journal of Physical Distribution and Logistics Management, vol. 40, no.5.

Liu, X., McKinnon, A.C., Grant, D. and Feng, Y. (2010) ‘Sources of Competitiveness for Logistics Service Providers’  Logistics Research, vol.2, no.1.

 

Research Reports for External Organisations

McKinnon, A.C. (2010)  ‘European Freight Transport Statistics: Limitations, Misinterpretations and Aspirations’ ACEA, Brussels
http://www.acea.be/index.php/files/european_freight_transport_statistics_limitations_misinterpretations_and_as

McKinnon, A.C. and Piecyk, M. (2010) ‘Measuring and Managing CO2 Emissions in European Chemical Transport’  Cefic, Brussels.
http://www.cefic.be/files/publications/McKinnon-Report-Final-230610.pdf

McKinnon, A.C. (2010) ‘Transport Challenges and Opportunities: Briefing Paper on the Freight Transport Sector’  Commission for Integrated Transport, London.
http://cfit.independent.gov.uk/pubs/2010/tco/think05/index.htm

McKinnon, A.C. (2009) ‘Innovation in Road Freight Transport: Achievements and Challenges’ International Transport Forum, Paris.
http://www.internationaltransportforum.org/Proceedings/Lisbon2009/index.html

McKinnon, A.C., Palmer, A, Edwards, J.B., Piecyk, M. (2009) ‘Reliability of Road Transport from the Perspective of Logistics Managers and Freight Operators’ International Transport Forum / OECD, Paris
http://www.internationaltransportforum.org/jtrc/infrastructure/networks/documents.html

McKinnon, A.C. (2008) ‘The Potential of Economic Incentives to Reduce CO2 Emissions from Goods Transport’ International Transport Forum, Paris
http://www.internationaltransportforum.org/Topics/Workshops/WS3McKinnon.pdf

McKinnon, A.C. (2008) ‘Advice on CO2 emissions from the UK Freight Transport Sector’ Committee on Climate Change, London.
http://www.theccc.org.uk/pdfs/Advice%20to%20the%20Shadow%20Climate%20Change%20Committee%20%28revised%20and%20corrected%20version%20for%20website%29.pdf

Knight, I., Newton, W., McKinnon, A.C., Palmer, A. et al (2008) ‘Longer and / or Longer and Heavier Goods Vehicles (LHVs): A study of the likely effects if permitted in the UK: Final Report’ TRL, Crowthorne.  (published 3/6/2006  Reference PPR285)
http://www.trl.co.uk/library/reports_publications/transport_reports_by_year/

McKinnon, A.C. (2007) ‘CO2 Emissions from Freight Transport in the UK’ Commission for Integrated Transport, London.
http://cfit.independent.gov.uk/pubs/2007/climatechange/index.htm

McKinnon, A.C. (2004) 'Supply Chain Excellence in the European Chemical Industry'  European Petrochemical Association / European Chemical Industry Council, Brussels.
http://www.cefic.be/files/publications/supply_chain_excellence.pdf

 

Online Videos of Presentations and an Interview

International Transport Forum: Transport and Energy: the Challenge of Climate Change
Liepzig , 28-30 May 2010.

Presentation by Professor McKinnon in the session on ‘Reducing CO2 Emissions in Goods Transport’
http://client.viewontv.com/oecd/280508_international-transport-forum/index.php?lang=en

European Commission: Green Week conference 2009, Brussels:
Presentation by Professor McKinnon on the opportunities for decarbonising logistics by 2050 in session 4.5 on  ‘2050 Vision: transport and spatial planning in a decarbonised world’  (Thursday 25th June 2009)   http://ec.europa.eu/environment/greenweek2009/greenweeklive_allsessions.html

European Commission:  ICT for Energy Efficiency 2010,  Brussels 23-24 February 2010.
Professor McKinnon contributed to a session on ‘Transport Logistics’
http://webcast.ec.europa.eu/eutv/portal/archive.html?viewConference=8511&catId=8471

Heavy Vehicle Transport Technology (HVTT11) Conference in Melbourne, 14-17 March 2010
Professor McKinnon delivered the keynote address (plenary session 1) and another presentation on heavy goods vehicles and the environment (plenary session 6)
http://www.hvttconference.com/news/daily/

NTM / AXTALK:
Professor McKinnon interviewed by Magnus Swahn, director of the Swedish transport and environment organisation NTM, about the measurement and management of CO2 emissions in freight transport.  (17th November 2010 in Stockholm)
http://www.axtalk.se/     or   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYHsFBy8o2M

 A graduate of the universities of Aberdeen, British Columbia and London, Professor Alan McKinnon has been researching and teaching in freight transport and logistics for thirty years and has published extensively in journals and books. He is a frequent contributor to academic and business conferences on logistics around the world.

Before joining Heriot-Watt University in 1987, Professor McKinnon was a lecturer at the University of Leicester. He has also been a visiting academic at several universities, including Sydney, Verona and Tilburg.

Professor McKinnon set up the Logistics Research Centre at Heriot-Watt University in 1997.

In 2002 Professor McKinnon  won the Herbert Crow award from the Worshipful Company of Carmen in the City of London. This award ‘recognises an individual who has significantly furthered transport knowledge and development through study, publication, analysis, research, training or systems’.

In 2003 he received the Sir Robert Lawrence Award, the highest distinction of the UK Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport for making a ‘major contribution to transport and logistics over a sustained period’.

In 2008 Professor McKinnon was appointed as Chair of the World Economic Forum's Logistics & Supply Chain Industry Agenda Council,

In 2009 he was made Guest Professor at the University of Linkoping in Sweden to support collaborative research in the field of Green Logistics and Distinguished Visiting Professor at the Malaysia Institute of Transport (MITRANS) at the Universiti Teknologi MARA.