Open Top Containers

For those of you who have been on ships and have handled containers for ages - may be rudimentary. Whilst this appears innovative, is the risk of theft higher on such containers? Again will these containers also be sealed in the normal manner? When somebody can approach by cutting from top, is it fool proof to have it strong on the doors?

Something on containers which I found worthwhile and interesting. I get least no. of responses on articles on Marine. Goods are transported from once place to another - often across Nations - perhaps almost any product that humans utilize spend sometime in a container. As goods are so transported, they require robust packaging to withstand the vagaries of transportation. The primary purpose of packing is to protect them from possible damages. The introduction of containers has vastly improved the way the goods are handled, transported as mostly the cargo within remains untouched during the journey. Here is a photo of a container:

There are five common standard lengths, 20-ft, 40-ft, 45-ft, 48-ft, and 53-ft. The majority of containers used worldwide today comply with the ISO standard, with 20'- and 40'-long containers predominating the development of standardized has ensured that cargoes, sometimes of different characters are shipped together easily. As the containers are stacked one upon the other, it is huge savings on space and costs. The exterior dimensions are generally 20 X 8X 8.6 Apart from the size there are various types: Standard, High cube, Hard top, Open top, flat track, platform, Refrigerated, Bulk and Tank containers. - To name a few. This is how containers are stacked.

The container floor is generally made of wood, usually planking or plywood. The sides are made up of corrugated steel sheets / aluminum sheet in conjunction with stiffening profiles. There is also a type known as Open top which as the same suggests will have opening on top.

This will be very easy to pack and unpack from the above using cranes or crab. They will be closed with tarpaulin. They are suitable for transporting over height cargo i.e., cargo taller than 2.54m / 8'5".Commodities commonly shipped in the open top container include machinery, industrial boilers, tractors, steel pipes, steel bars and cables. Read recently about a futuristic invention in the container transport: a new sliding open top container - developed in South Korea. This promises to overcome drawbacks associated with earlier designs at a cost that represents only a marginal increase over that of a standard open top. This is developed and patented by a company owned by former Hanjin Executive.

In the original version, specially designed roof bow ends ran on rollers in tracks in the top side rails and were connected by a scissor mechanism, which ensured that they were correctly spaced and could not jam in the tracks. The tarpaulin was attached to each roof bow and once detached from the top rails and headers, the tarpaulin and roof bows could be rolled back concertina-fashion to the front end of the container like the hood of a soft top car.

There were some troubles experienced including the restriction of loading area by the retracted tarpaulin at one end of container and thus denying usage of full internal length of cargo. Besides the complication in design, the premium cost was also a deterrent. The Manufacturer now claims that all that is past with the new design. The tarpaulin is no longer connected to the roof bows and can be removed in the normal way. The roof bow ends have been redesigned and now feature both horizontal and vertical rollers to avoid any risk of jamming, while the complicated scissor mechanism connecting the roof bows has been eliminated and the correct spacing between the roof bows is now achieved by the use of a fixed length nylon rope.

In addition, a recess in the roller track at the front end of the container allows the roof bows to be removed completely to allow the container to accommodate over height and full internal length cargo. Hooks are provided on the front end wall to stow the roof bows when they are not in use in order to minimize the risk of loss or damage. But perhaps most importantly, the extra cost of the system over a standard open top has been reduced to around US$200 for a 20ft container and US$300 for a 40ft.

If you are interested, the maximum permissible weight (called Rating) i.e., weight of a container + its contents of a 20' dry cargo is 24000 kgs and for a 40' is 30480 kgs.

Expect your feedback on the article...........................

With Regards S Sampathkumar Head of Commercial Claims - Automotive Vertical

ROYAL SUNDARAM ALLIANCE INSURANCE CO LTD