Container Standardisation: Improving Logistics Efficiency and Global Trade

Containers are used all over the world. These large metal boxes have two main advantages: firstly it protects and transports the goods well and secondly it can be recycled many times.

Although these containers may come from different places such as China, the United States, Europe, etc., they are all globally standardised in terms of size specifications. Regardless of origin, all containers can be stacked and loaded, and this standardised design makes international trade transport particularly convenient.

Standardised containers can be used not only in ship transport, but are also suitable for trucking and aircraft transport. In order to facilitate efficient loading, the international common standard container adopts the uniform width design, can be flexibly combined.

At present, the width of the container used globally is uniformly 2.438 metres (equal to 8 feet), with four specifications for length and four choices for height.

Container Dimensions Specs 

|Type|Specs/foot|L*mm|W/mm|

|1A |40 |12 192 |2 438 |

|1B |30 |9 125 |2 438 |

|1C |20 |6 058 |2 438 |

|1D |10 |2 991 |2 438 |

1Ft=0.3048M

40GP 12192mm*2438mm*2591mm = 40ft*8ft*8.5ft

20GP 6058mm*2438mm*2591mm =19.875ft*8ft*8.5ft

This standardised design greatly improves global logistics efficiency. No matter which mode of transport is used, the container can be quickly transferred without unpacking, so that cross-border trade is as convenient as local delivery. It is this ‘one box pass the global’ mode, really realised the close connection of the world economy, so that the earth has become an efficient ‘global village’.

Standardised containers can be used not only in maritime transport, but also in road transport, air transport and so on.

In order to effectively use the space, standardised containers, there is a certain relationship between different box size. The current international standard containers have the same width, four lengths and four heights.

Standardised containers speed up the turnover of goods around the world, making ‘global integration’ a reality and making the world smaller.