Shipping Container, Freight Container, Container, Box, TEU, FEU—many of the synonyms and acronyms by which the common shipping container is referred, depending on who is talking.
Universally hailed as one of the greatest inventions of the modern world, the ubiquitous shipping container has really and truly made the world a smaller place and, in my view, can be termed the one true architect of globalization.
The shipping container has evolved from being just a dumb box to being a smart container capable of being tracked anywhere in the world, in some cases even to the bottom of the ocean.
The shipping container comes in different sizes and types. This is a refresher on the various types of shipping containers, including some unusual shipping containers in use today, their dimensions, and information relating to their use and purpose.
The most common container types are:
1) Dry or Dry Van (DV) or General Purpose (GP)
GP containers come in 20′ and 40′ sizes.
These containers are standard containers that don’t have any special features and are used to load normal general cargo of various varieties.
2) High Cube (HC or HQ) Container
A high cube container is a type of container that is 1 foot more in height than a standard 40′ container. There are also some 20′ HQ containers in circulation, although not as popular.
High Cube containers are used by customers who ship cargo that requires bigger volume capacity, as a High Cube can accommodate about 10 cbm more than a standard container.
These days most of the shipping lines are moving more and more towards high cube containers than GP containers.
3) Open Top (OT) Container
An open-top container is a type of container that has a removable top as opposed to the fixed top of a GP container. An OT container comes in 20′ and 40′ sizes.
It is mainly used for cargo that cannot be easily loaded through the door and needs to be loaded from the top, like machinery, glass, or cargo that extends beyond the height of the container.
4) Refrigerated (RF) Container
Commonly referred to as a Reefer container, this highly specialized container comes in 20′ and 40′ sizes. A refrigerated container or reefer is a shipping container used for the carriage of goods that require to be maintained at a set temperature.
While a reefer will have an integral refrigeration unit, they rely on external power, from electrical power points at a land-based site, a container ship, or while in the port.
While being transported by truck, they may be powered by diesel-powered generators (“gensets”) which are attached to the container, especially during long journeys.
Reefer containers are used to carry many cargoes that are sensitive to temperature changes and require a temperature-controlled environment.
Examples include meat, fresh produce, fruits, vegetables, some chemicals, chocolates, and many more.
The majority of the 40′ reefer containers are high cube containers. Many modern ships are designed to carry an optimum 40’RF.
Most shipping lines are phasing out 20′ RFs as the volume of cargo carried by a 20′ RF is much lesser compared to a 40′, and most of the customers prefer 40′ RF.
These days, with the advances in technology and digitalization, many reefer containers have inbuilt monitoring systems that allow the customer to monitor the refrigerated container and the condition of the cargo inside it.
Using satellite and mobile radio technology, it is now possible for the customer to identify the container’s location, temperature profile, relative humidity, and concentrations of oxygen and CO2—around the clock and in real-time. In addition, certain settings can be adjusted remotely.
5) Flatrack (FR), Platform or Collapsible Flatrack (PL, COFL)
These specialized containers also come in 20′ and 40′ sizes.
These types of containers are mainly used for the carriage of cargo that is overwidth and/or overhigh. Big machinery, vehicles on tracks, steel coils, cable reels, etc. can be loaded in these types of containers.
Not just when the cargo is out of gauge; these containers are also used even if the cargo is out of gauge, awkward to load normally, and may require the use of forklifts or mobile cranes.
There are also certain types of flat racks known as collapsible flat racks because the end posts can be folded, making it like a platform.
These types of containers are mainly used for cargo that is overwidth, overlength, and/or overhigh. Big machinery, heavy equipment, large vehicles on tracks, boats, big reels, etc. can be loaded on these types of containers.
Not just when the cargo is out of gauge, these containers are also used even if the cargo is in gauge, but awkward to load normally and may require the use of forklifts or mobile cranes.
6) Tanktainer (TK)
This container type, which comes mostly in 20′ size, is perhaps one of the highly specialized container types in the entire fleet of ISO containers.
A tank container, or tanktainer, is a cylindrical-shaped pressurized receptacle housed in a 20′ x 8′ x 8.5′ frame for the transport of hazardous and non-hazardous liquids in bulk.
These containers are used for the transportation of food cargoes, semi-hazardous products like diesel, paraffin, and petrol additives, and also hazardous products, such as chemicals and petroleum products. There are even more specialized tank containers to carry gases.
These tank containers usually have a carrying capacity of between 21,000 and 26,000 liters of liquid cargo, depending on the product, density, and specific gravity.
There are several types of tanks, including fuel tanks, baffled tanks, heated tanks, food-grade tanks, etc., and not all shipping lines have these types of containers in their fleet. This is usually operated by specialist tank container operators.
All the above containers fall within the standards set by the International Standards Organisation for shipping containers. As per the ISO agreement, various characteristics of a container, including its length, height, payload, and many other details, are identified by the markings on a container.
A list of “generic” dimensions for all the container types mentioned above is available for download from the Downloads page of this site. Please note that these are general guidelines, and each shipping line has a slight variation in the dimensions.
Apart from the above standard types of containers, some unusual and different types of containers are also in circulation.
Super-Rack container: Similar in use as a Flat Rack container but with a BIG difference. The difference is that in a Super Rack container, the corner posts can be extended upwards to increase the height.
This is most useful when you have overhigh cargo. Generally, when you load heavy cargo on a flat rack, slings will need to be used to lift the container as the spreader can’t lock onto the corner posts. With the super rack, you can lift the container directly without any slings, as the below images will demonstrate.
Container with side doors: a rare type of container used on certain specific routes to load certain specific cargo that can’t be loaded through the normal doors or through the top.
Bulktainer -Normally has loading hatches on the top, which enable bulk cargo to be poured into the container, and also has “gates” at the bottom of the container, which enable the cargo to be offloaded by tipping the container.
48′ and 53′ containers, both of which are more commonly seen in the USA and its corresponding Far Eastern/European trade lanes mainly. These containers also have lifting points at 40′, so standard spreaders can be used.
Half-height containers/Rototainers are purpose-built for heavy-duty mining applications, enabling smooth movement of cargo from mine to ship. These are used in conjunction with a Tippler, which does a 180-degree rotation to discharge the product.
Half-heights are perfect for shipping dense cargo such as mineral sands, salt, ore, and many other cargo types.
The half-height container is 1450mm high to allow the units to be shipped in a normal 2900mm high container slot (9’6 high). This can save logistic companies a fortune when returning empty containers.
The half-heights are a real multipurpose container. With rear doors, a tipping hatch, and a hard lid.
Tworty, an innovative new ISO container design that allows a unit to be used either as a 40ft or 20ft box, has completed its maiden voyage.
The Tworty Box is made up of 2×20′ containers that can be linked together to form 1×40′ containers, thereby the name “twenty + forty = tworty”.
It has doors at each end; the second door opens to the inside and can only be locked from the inside.
This door can be fixed to the container ceiling, and, with the use of its special bonding elements, another Tworty Box can be joined up, thereby creating a 40ft unit of full value and standard doors at both ends.
Images are courtesy of Super Rack, who are the inventors of the above height-adjustable flat rack container; Tworty.com, who are the inventors of The Tworty container; and The Intermodal Container webpage, which displays a photographic collection of unusual and different container types.
Photo credits: Cor Rood, Jos Stiphout, Ryan Hickey, Gary Hannes.
