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It is often said that the best ideas are the simplest ones. The humble container is the perfect example of that. On the surface, it just looks like a simple steel box. But dig a little deeper and you can discover a world of innovation that has accompanied it on its journey since it was developed just 50 years ago.
Continuous thinking by the industry about how to make the basic idea better has led to a highly efficient, joined-up form of cargo transport that was unthinkable just 50 years ago. The combination of increasingly efficient ships, the standardisation of containers and ever-faster connections between other forms of transport is a triumph of logistics. It means that as consumers, we can enjoy a huge range of products from around the world and at prices that would scarcely have been conceivable in earlier times.
Container ships have continued to become bigger and more efficient to a remarkable degree, all with the simple aim of making cargo transport more efficient, reliable, cost-effective and environmentally-friendly. The world’s biggest ships in 2007 are an astonishing 1,300 feet long – nearly 400m or the distance around an Olympic running track. They are such sights that large crowds gather at ports across the world to watch them dock.
They can carry 11,000 20-foot containers (also known as twenty-foot equivalent units or TEU). If you loaded all of those containers onto a train it would be 71 kilometres or 44 miles long . Their engine rooms are six storeys high and one of their rudders is the size of a London double-decker bus. Yet they can be operated by teams of as few as 13 people. And even larger container ships are under construction.
These ships combine large capacity with immense power and speed. A container vessel capable of carrying between 8,000 and 10,000 TEUs can be loaded with 77,000 tons of cargo – the equivalent of 300 jumbo jets – and travel at up to 24.8 knots, or about 46 kilometres per hour. To shift this amount of cargo, a large container ship engine has approximately 110,000 brake horsepower, about 1,000 times more than a family car. This power is employed incredibly efficiently and as a result container shipping remains the most efficient way to move cargo.
The standard container itself features innovations that ensure the goods inside are kept secure. For example, general purpose containers are watertight to protect the cargo from rain and sea-spray while ‘reefer’ containers are refrigerated so that perishable or sensitive goods such as cheese, fruit and vegetables, fish, meat, wine or pharmaceuticals remain in top condition during transit.
While of a standard size to enable quick and easy transport, containers are also available in a variety of configurations that include ‘end-opening’, ‘side-opening’, ‘half-height’, ‘open-top’, ‘flat track’, ‘liquid bulk’, and ‘modular’ . This makes container shipping incredibly versatile and able to transport just about any product imaginable.
Containers and container ships are part of a highly-sophisticated logistical system. Starting at the dockside, containers are not just stacked randomly onto ships: computer software enables precise planning for the loading and unloading of containers. This makes the process run very efficiently as well as helping keep the vessel stable.
If you thought that container shipping was just about hardware, think again. The industry exploits advances in e-commerce to allow it to offer customers an evermore convenient and efficient service. Increasingly, tariff checks, booking, payment, and invoicing are occurring online, whenever and wherever the customer desires, and with real-time results. Throughout the cargo’s journey, online ‘track-and–trace’ systems allow shippers to follow their containers along the supply chain, from where they were picked up, to where they are delivered at the end . This means that customers can manage their businesses safe in the knowledge that they know what goods are going to arrive where and when. So it is no surprise that the container shipping industry prides itself on getting the right product to the right place at the right time with accuracy.
With innovation and evolution continuing throughout the industry, container shipping leads international trade and brings evermore benefits to both businesses and customers across the world.
Not bad for a simple steel box!
Continuous thinking by the industry about how to make the basic idea better has led to a highly efficient, joined-up form of cargo transport that was unthinkable just 50 years ago. The combination of increasingly efficient ships, the standardisation of containers and ever-faster connections between other forms of transport is a triumph of logistics. It means that as consumers, we can enjoy a huge range of products from around the world and at prices that would scarcely have been conceivable in earlier times.
Container ships have continued to become bigger and more efficient to a remarkable degree, all with the simple aim of making cargo transport more efficient, reliable, cost-effective and environmentally-friendly. The world’s biggest ships in 2007 are an astonishing 1,300 feet long – nearly 400m or the distance around an Olympic running track. They are such sights that large crowds gather at ports across the world to watch them dock.
They can carry 11,000 20-foot containers (also known as twenty-foot equivalent units or TEU). If you loaded all of those containers onto a train it would be 71 kilometres or 44 miles long . Their engine rooms are six storeys high and one of their rudders is the size of a London double-decker bus. Yet they can be operated by teams of as few as 13 people. And even larger container ships are under construction.
These ships combine large capacity with immense power and speed. A container vessel capable of carrying between 8,000 and 10,000 TEUs can be loaded with 77,000 tons of cargo – the equivalent of 300 jumbo jets – and travel at up to 24.8 knots, or about 46 kilometres per hour. To shift this amount of cargo, a large container ship engine has approximately 110,000 brake horsepower, about 1,000 times more than a family car. This power is employed incredibly efficiently and as a result container shipping remains the most efficient way to move cargo.
The standard container itself features innovations that ensure the goods inside are kept secure. For example, general purpose containers are watertight to protect the cargo from rain and sea-spray while ‘reefer’ containers are refrigerated so that perishable or sensitive goods such as cheese, fruit and vegetables, fish, meat, wine or pharmaceuticals remain in top condition during transit.
While of a standard size to enable quick and easy transport, containers are also available in a variety of configurations that include ‘end-opening’, ‘side-opening’, ‘half-height’, ‘open-top’, ‘flat track’, ‘liquid bulk’, and ‘modular’ . This makes container shipping incredibly versatile and able to transport just about any product imaginable.
Containers and container ships are part of a highly-sophisticated logistical system. Starting at the dockside, containers are not just stacked randomly onto ships: computer software enables precise planning for the loading and unloading of containers. This makes the process run very efficiently as well as helping keep the vessel stable.
If you thought that container shipping was just about hardware, think again. The industry exploits advances in e-commerce to allow it to offer customers an evermore convenient and efficient service. Increasingly, tariff checks, booking, payment, and invoicing are occurring online, whenever and wherever the customer desires, and with real-time results. Throughout the cargo’s journey, online ‘track-and–trace’ systems allow shippers to follow their containers along the supply chain, from where they were picked up, to where they are delivered at the end . This means that customers can manage their businesses safe in the knowledge that they know what goods are going to arrive where and when. So it is no surprise that the container shipping industry prides itself on getting the right product to the right place at the right time with accuracy.
With innovation and evolution continuing throughout the industry, container shipping leads international trade and brings evermore benefits to both businesses and customers across the world.
Not bad for a simple steel box!
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