Container ships are designed to transport shipping containers, which can hold a variety of goods. The technique was perfected in the 1950s by Malcolm McLean, who moved only the container onto the ship. Container ship storage is measured in TEUs, and the containers are labeled and tracked electronically. These ships have risks and environmental impacts.
Container ships are ocean-going vessels that are specifically designed to handle shipping containers, giant metal boxes that are typically 40 feet (12 meters) long. Shipping containers can hold a wide variety of dry goods items to be shipped around the world, including food, textiles, and electronics. The idea of packaging products for shipping was conceived in the 20th century, when shipping companies realized that shipping products in giant containers was more efficient. In the 1950s, the technique was perfected, and by the end of the century, these ships were moving millions of tons of cargo around the globe.
The first container ships were designed to be loaded with rail cars. The wagons could be moved directly to the shipping yard with wheels, and then loaded onto the ship with cranes. At the other extreme, the wagons could be put back on the tracks and moved to their final destination. In the 1950s, Malcolm McLean, who founded McLean Trucking and later moved into shipping, refined the technique, moving only the container onto the ship, rather than the container and wheeled chassis used to support it. This eliminated the waste of space on the ships, and also paved the way for the development of these ships, which are designed to have maximum space efficiency for containers of uniform size.
Container ship storage space is typically measured in terms of twenty-foot (6-meter) equivalent units (TEUs). Most shipping containers come in 20- or 40-foot lengths, which means the ship can be efficiently packed to capacity with a collection of shipping containers. On small ships, the rigging equipment is attached to the ship so that she can be loaded or unloaded anywhere. On larger ships, the ship does not have rigging equipment, and must be docked in specific ports with cranes that are capable of handling the very large ship.
When preparing products for container transport, the packing company clearly labels its shipping containers, often by placing electronic tags to track them. The contents of a container are listed on a manifest, and the containers are loaded so that containers going to different destinations are stacked together on the ship, allowing for quick unloading at the final destination. Shipping containers can be placed on rail cars or on specially designed trucks to get to and from the shipping yard, and to their final destinations.
Like other very large ships, container ships carry some risk for their owners. Highly valuable cargo is usually insured against loss of the ship due to weather or piracy. These ships are very slow and difficult to maneuver, requiring special skills from the crews running them to achieve efficient port-to-port time. Additionally, the contents of shipping containers can be damaged, and it is important that crane operators are well trained and aware of the products they are handling. These ships also have environmental impacts, especially smaller ports that must be dredged to accommodate them. Dredging is detrimental to the marine environment, and this has been raised as a concern by environmental organizations who are concerned about the proliferation of container shipping.
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