The intermodal container may be referred to by other names such as a box, high-cube container, ISO container, freight container, sea box, container and conex box. These units are manufactured from standardized reusable steel. They provide secure and effective and safe storage for moving materials all over the globe via a international containerized intermodal freight system.
"Intermodal" is a term that refer to the container which could be moved between one kind of transport to another. Intermodal may refer from a ship to truck or ship to rail, without having to unload and reload the container's contents. Some of the container lengths that have a distinctive ISO 6346 reporting mark on them range from 2.438 m or 8-feet to 56 feet or 17.07m. These models are as high as 8 feet or 2.438 m to 9 feet, 6 inches or 2.9 m. It is estimated that there are approximately 17 million intermodal containers within the world of various kinds to suit a range of cargoes.
These containers can be transported by freight train, semi-truck trailer and container ship. They can also travel many distances without having to be unpacked. At container terminals, they are transferred between modes using container cranes. Often times a reach-stacker is employed to transfer from a flat-bed truck to a rail car. These units are secured during transportation by a range of "twistlock" points located at each corner on the container.
To be able to manage to containers tracking and identification, each and every container is outfitted with a BIC code or bin identification code painted directly on the outside of the box. These models are capable of lifting things ranging approximately 20 to 25 tonnes.
For transport on rails, the container can be carried on flatcars or on well cars. Well cars have been designed especially for use by intermodal containers. They could accommodate double-stacked containers efficiently and safely. The loading gauge of a rail system can actually restrict the kinds of container shipment and the specific modes of the shipment. Like for example, the smaller loading gauges which are normally found within European railroads would only handle single-stacked containers. In certain countries such as the United Kingdom, there are certain sections of the rail network which cannot accommodate high-cube containers, unless they could utilize well cars only.
These containers are made sturdy enough to last through the many travels across extreme distances. These containers are reused by businesses and are able to transport large amounts of cargo. These containers are responsible for transporting numerous of the objects we rely on everyday around the world.