A Sea freight container is a standardised container made of steel and used for the transport of various goods by sea. The standards that the Sea freight container must fulfil are clearly defined in ISO standard 668. The ISO standard is adopted by the IMO, the International Maritime Organisation. Due to this fact, sea freight containers are also often referred to as ISO containers.

The dimensions of the container

The most commonly used and widespread Sea freight container has a length of 20 or 40 feet. The width of these containers is eight feet. In addition, there are many other standardised Sea freight containerthat are suitable for transporting various goods by Ocean Freight .

Good to know: Sea freight container are no longer used exclusively for sea transport, but also for other means of transport.

There are also special containers, such as refrigerated containers, car containers or tank containers. Furthermore, there are also special containers that must be used for the safe transport of hazardous goods in order to ensure safety.

Which Sea freight container is the right one is therefore always individually determined by the goods being transported, whereas the costs for using the models naturally vary.

The beginning of the Sea freight container dates back to the 1950s. Containers were first used in the USA at that time. The idea of the container is attributed to the American shipowner and transport company Malcom P. McLaren. To this day, they have been continuously developed and adapted to the needs and requirements of the many goods.

The Advantages:

Transporting goods in containers offers numerous advantages. The standardised containers enable simple, fast and safe handling of various goods in ports. In addition, the containers can be used with different means of transport and do not have to be repacked again and again. According to estimates, 70 per cent of sea freight alone is containerized and experts put the global container stock at 34 million units.