Many of us seem to think that our containers are loaded onto cargo ships and then delivered to individuals in the UK. However, there is a lot more that happens behind the scenes.  How much do you really know about your container?  Where did it come from?, what was loaded in the shipping container through the shipping process? 


The majority of containers are manufactured in China. From there they are loaded with cargo and then start their journey as they are loaded on to massive cargo ships operated by companies like CMA, CGM, Maersk and CSCL. Luckily myself, and all of the other Lion Containers Ltd staff got to see the CSCL Globe on its maiden voyage to Felixstowe this year, you can read more about my
trip here >>

All of these ships enter different ports throughout Europe. A lot goes on in the shipping industry that we have absolutely no idea about; containers are loaded and off-loaded using enormous cranes portside, the methods of planning for loading a cargo vessel are extremely efficient and ensure that the containers are loaded and off-loaded in a logical manner.  The engineers on the vessels are constantly working hard to ensure the ship is safe and runs correctly, delays can be expensive and dangerous!. 

Little do we know whilst working from home, or at our desk in the office, our goods are currently being shipped in a shipping container right now.  Each box is heavily loaded with goods such as, paper, food, clothes, cars ,and probably even the electrical components in your computer screen that your reading this off! The reality behind all this is, if we did not have container ships today laden with goods the world would simply not work the way it does today, the global economy would grind to a halt – shipping containers really do make the world go around!

It has been estimated that 10,000 shipping containers are lost each year at sea! Just think how many containers and goods are currently at the bottom of the ocean! Your container that you have on site or may be considering to get very soon may have gone through some horrendous conditions out on sea, yet they still guarantee a wind and water tight condition, the steel structure of these containers make them very robust, and it is just as well given the treacherous conditions they may face traversing our world’s oceans. 

Your shipping container has gone through a lot from getting manufactured in  China, shipped over to Europe whilst being loaded with heavy goods and even facing harsh weather conditions, and being lucky enough not to tip of the ship! So, next time you load your container with your goods, think about the life it has had.