Shipping containers have affected our daily lives for many years. Shipping containers carry a large percentage of the goods that impact our daily lives, and many people work with them (both directly and indirectly) in business.
Our experts in container transport services in Sydney have some interesting facts about shipping containers:
1. The inventor of the shipping container was Malcolm McLean (1913-2001). In 1956 he created the metal shipping container to replace the old style “break bulk” method of goods handling.
2. There are currently over 17 million shipping containers in the world, and five or six million of them are currently shipping around the world on vessels, trucks, and trains. In total, they make around 200 million trips a year.
3. It’s estimated that there are 10,000 shipping containers lost at sea every year. That’s almost one container every hour!
4. Approximately 97% of all shipping containers are manufactured in China. This is due to the fact the Chinese labour rate is lower than many other countries and that much of the world’s products are produced in China.
5. Shanghai, China is the busiest container port in the world with over 35 million (TEU=equivalent to a 20ft container) containers having passed through the port.
6. The ‘CSCL Globe’ was recorded the largest cargo ship in the world in November 2014. The ‘CSCL Globe’ is owned by China Shipping container lines and is a length of 1,312ft long by 194ft wide and holds the equivalent of 19,100 TEU (TEU=20ft equivalent).
7. All commercially used shipping containers have a serial number which is made up of a 4 letter prefix The first three letters signify the owner, the next letter is the category of the container (U = freight container), followed by a six digit serial number and finally a check digit. There is a mathematical formula that works out the check digit (final number).
8. Shipping containers can last over 25 years! Provided they are taken care of with regular paint and maintenance. See our Container care page.
To find out more about our range of container transport services and bond store in Sydney, contact WSI today.
