A shipping container is a large, usually rectangular-shaped, storage place that is suitable to endure delivery, storage, and handling of goods that are elected for delivery. It ranges from large reusable steel boxes commonly seen carried by trucks around the city and used for international shipments to the more commonly seen wooden crates or boxes. Containers like these are designed to withstand any external elements that it may be encountered during the entire forwarding process and protect its contents from any damage. In freight forwarding, this type of container is designed and used so that goods that are sent for delivery can be moved from one type of transport courier to another without unloading and reloading the goods themselves.
It is an efficient way of shipping freight that is large in size through the use of standardized and sealed containers that are loaded in cargo ships, trains and/or trucks. Through the use of a shipping container, the goods or contents are more efficiently handled, making the unloading of the actual contents unnecessary during the entire delivery process and minimizing the possibility of damaging the goods. These shipping containers are loaded in container ships or cargo ships that are specifically designed to carry all truck-size loads and transport these to different places around the world. It is a vital part of the import and export markets of any country. These containers are able to hold and transport bulk materials and goods that are high in volume, although the only way to ferry these containers from the point of origin to their elected destinations in a foreign country is by sea which requires a longer period of time due to size and weight.
Shipping containers are not only used to transfer products or goods but can also be used for storage of goods on land. They serve the purpose of a warehouse for the goods on land while waiting for the cue to be transported.
The most common shipping container transported by sea, road or rail measures at 6.1 or 12.2 meters long by 2.4 meters wide and 2.6 meters high. The freight forwarding industry normally refers to a container as either a TEU (if it is 20 feet long) or a 2TEU (if it is 40 feet long). TEU means Twenty-Foot Equivalent Unit which is the measurement used for containers in the freight industry. These shipping containers make use of cranes during their transfer from one mode of transport to another due to their massive weight.
Shipping containers can carry all types of items be it perishable goods like fruits and big bulky materials like steel or sometimes even cars. They are the best options for delivering high-volume goods that are not governed by strict time constraints.