Definition of container container:

It refers to a kind of container used to transport goods during the intermodal transportation by sea, land and air. Hong Kong calls it "container". Taiwan calls it "container". As for the definition of container, different countries, regions and organizations have different expressions in the world.

The international organization for Standardization (ISO) defines containers as follows:

Container is a kind of transportation equipment; It has sufficient strength and can be used repeatedly for a long time; Specially designed for the convenience of commodity transportation, there is no need to change the loading midway when transporting under one or more modes of transportation; It has devices for rapid loading, unloading and handling, especially when transferring from one mode of transportation to another; During the design, it is noted that it is convenient for the goods to be filled or unloaded; The content product is 1 cubic meter or more. The meaning of the term container does not include the general packaging of vehicles.

Classification of containers:

There are many kinds of containers used to transport goods, ranging from small folding containers for household goods to 40 foot standard containers, as well as air containers. Here we only introduce the types of international freight containers commonly used in maritime transportation.

Classification by purpose:

Containers are generally divided into:

(1) dry cargo container

It is also known as general cargo container, is used to transport general cargo without temperature control. It is widely used. According to statistics in 1983, of the 3million containers in the world, 85% are general cargo containers, about 2.54 million. This kind of container is usually closed, with a door at one end or side. This kind of container is usually used to carry cultural goods, chemical supplies, electronic machinery, handicrafts, medicine, daily necessities, textiles and instrument parts. This is the most commonly used container at ordinary times. All kinds of solid bulk, granular or powdery goods that are not affected by temperature changes can be transported by this kind of container.

(2) keep constant temperature containers 

It is used to transport goods that need to be refrigerated or insulated. All container walls are insulated with materials with low thermal conductivity. Containers can be divided into the following three types:

① reefer container is a heat preservation container that mainly transports frozen food and can maintain the set temperature. It is specially designed for transporting food such as fish, meat, fresh fruits and vegetables. At present, there are basically two kinds of refrigerated containers used internationally: one is a mechanical refrigerated container with a refrigerator in the container; Another kind of container has no refrigerator but only heat insulation structure, that is, there are air inlets and air outlets on the end wall of the container. The box is installed in the cabin and the cold air is supplied by the refrigerating device of the ship. This kind of container is called clutch refrigerated container (also known as external or clamp refrigerated container).

② thermal insulation container is a container with sufficient thermal insulation structure to carry fruits, vegetables and other goods, prevent excessive temperature rise, and maintain the freshness of goods. It is usually used for ice as refrigerant, and the holding time is about 72 hours.

③ vented container is a container with ventilation holes on the end wall and side wall, which is used for transporting fruits, vegetables and other goods that do not need to be frozen and have a respiratory effect. If the vent is closed, it can also be used as a grocery container.

(3) tank container

It is a container specially used to carry liquid goods such as alcohol, oil (such as animal and vegetable oil), liquid food and chemicals. It can also carry dangerous goods of other liquids. This kind of container can be divided into single tank and multi tank. The four corners of the tank body are composed of pillars and braces. Due to the high strength of the side wall, it is generally used to load bulk cargoes with relatively high density, such as malt and chemicals, while the latter is used to load grains with relatively low density. The loading port on the top of the bulk container shall be provided with a cover with good water tightness to prevent rain water from entering the box.

(4) platform based container

It is a container without top and side walls, even the end walls are removed, but only the bottom plate and four corner columns. This kind of container can be loaded and unloaded from the front, back, left, right and top, and is suitable for loading long and heavy cargoes, such as heavy machinery, steel, steel pipes, wood, steel ingots, etc. Gantry containers are not watertight, and goods that are afraid of moisture cannot be shipped, or covered with canvas.

(5) Platform container

It is a special structural container that is simplified on the platform container and only retains the bottom plate. Length and width of the platform. The bottom size of the container is the same as that of the international standard container, and the same fasteners and lifting devices as other containers can be used. The adoption of this container breaks the concept that containers must have a certain volume in the past.

(6) open top container

It is a kind of container without rigid top, but with a roof made of canvas, plastic cloth or plastic coated cloth supported by foldable or foldable top beam. Other components are similar to general containers. This kind of container is suitable for loading large goods and heavy goods, such as steel, wood, especially fragile heavy goods such as glass plates. It is not easy to be damaged by lifting it into the box from the top with a crane, and it is also easy to be fixed in the box.

(7) car container

It is a special container for transporting small cars. It is characterized by installing a steel frame on the bottom of a simple box, usually without box walls (including end walls and side walls). This kind of container is divided into single-layer and double-layer. Because the height of the car is 1.35-1.45 meters, if it is installed in an 8-foot (2; 438 meter) standard container, its volume will waste more than 2 / 5. As a result, double deck containers have emerged. This double deck container has two heights: one is 10.5 feet (3.2 meters) and the other is twice the height of 8.5 feet. Therefore, automobile containers are generally not international standard containers.

(8) Pen container or live stockcontainer

It is a container used to transport live poultry such as chickens, ducks and geese and live domestic animals such as cattle, horses, sheep and pigs. In order to cover the sun, the top of the box is covered with plywood, and windows made of aluminum mesh are used on the side and end faces, so as to have good ventilation. There are cleanouts and drains under the side wall, and sliding doors that move up and down are equipped to clean out the garbage. There is also a feeding port. Animal containers on ships should generally be installed on the deck, because the air circulation on the deck is convenient for cleaning and care.

(9) garment container 

This kind of container is characterized by that there are many cross bars on the upper side beam of the box, and a number of belt buckles, nylon belt buckles or ropes are hung on each cross bar. The ready-made clothes are directly hung on the belt buckles or ropes by using the hooks on the clothes hangers. This kind of clothing loading method belongs to non packaging transportation. It not only saves packaging materials and packaging costs, but also reduces manual labor and improves the transportation quality of clothing.