Containers Definition for the Freight Industry presented by Apparel Search |
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Containerization
is a system of
intermodal
cargo
transport
using standard ISO containers
that can be loaded on
container
ships,
railroad
cars, and
trucks.
There are three common standard
lengths, 20 ft. (6.1 m),
40 ft. (12.2 m) and 45 ft.
(13.7 m). Container capacity
(of ships, ports, etc.) is
measured in twenty-foot
equivalent units (TEU,
or sometimes teu).
A twenty-foot equivalent
unit is a measure of containerized
cargo equal to one standard
20 ft. (length) 8 ft. (width)
8.5 ft. (height) container
(approximately 39 m3).
Most containers today are
of the 40-ft variety and
thus are 2 TEU. 45 ft. containers
are also designated 2 TEU.
Two TEU are referred to
as one FEU or "Forty-foot
equivalent unit".
These two terms of measurement
are used interchangeably. "High
cube" containers have
a height of 9.5 ft. (2.9 m),
while half-height containers,
used for heavy loads, have
a height of 4.25 ft. (1.3
m).
HistoryContainerization is an important element of the logistics revolution that changed freight handling in the 20th century. Malcolm McLean claimed to have invented the shipping container in the 1930s in New Jersey, but only founded Sea-Land corporation in the 1950s. McLean explained that while sitting at a dock waiting for cargo he trucked in to be reloaded onto a ship, he realized that rather than loading and unloading the truck, the truck itself (with some minor modifications) could be the container that is transported. Containerization revolutionized cargo shipping. Today, approximately 90% of cargo moves by containers stacked on transport ships. Over 200 million containers are shipped per year. The widespread use of ISO standard containers influenced modifications in other freight moving standards, gradually forcing removable truck bodies or swap bodies into the same sizes and shapes (though without the strength needed to be stacked), and changing completely the worldwide use of freight pallets which fit into ISO containers or into commercial vehicles. Biggest Container Companies
(SOURCE: BRS-Alphaliner) Other container systems
Related topics for further research
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