R O T R O N I C H U M I D I T Y F U N F A C T S

Containers

Containers in generalA container is a protective housingfor safe transportation and storageof goods. Safe means, in this con-text, the characteristics of the con-tainers content remain unchangedunder all relevant mechanical andclimatic conditions. The stress asubstance might be exposed to isvaried and may include: mechanical (static and dynamic) climatically (railway, truck andship over various climate zones)

chemical (aggressive gases and fluids)

biological (insects, fungalattack, mildew, bacteria,microorganisms).Depending on the potential level

of the threat, a container may haveto be equipped with special con-trols, restraints, protective gear orenvironmental management to pre-serve the condition of the contents.

Specialized Containers

Depending on the application, thereare myriad container variations. Forexample, the humidor is designedspecifically to preserve the taste andaroma for precious cigars ensuringthe maximum pleasure of the cigarconnoisseur.

Another example of a highlyspecialized container is for thetransportation of organs for criticaltransplant surgery to save lives. Theconditions must me maintained atspecific temperature and, in somecases, specific humidity and CO2levels. Each of these examplesdemonstrate the need for controlledenvironmental conditions (humid-ity, temperature or CO2) in the sur-roundings of their contents.

1

continued

Standard Shipping Containers

When most of us hear the wordContainer we think of the largetransportation containers used forair, sea and road cargo. These con-tainers have been standardized bythe International Organization forStandardization (ISO) under coop-eration of the International Mar-itime Organization (IMO) to a lengthof 20 or 40 feet and a width of 8feet. The significant advantage ofstandardization is the seamlessintegration between the differentmodes of a modern transportationchain decreasing transportationtime and cost.

Facts & Figures As of 2010, Shanghai China is thebusiest container port in the worldwith more than 29,000,000 containerspassing through the port each year.

The Port of Los Angeles processes6,500,000 containers each year, rank-ing it #17 in the world and #1 in theUnited States.

The largest container ship in theworld is the Emma Maersk, 1300 feetlong and capable of carrying14,000 20foot containers.

95% of the world cargo moves by ship.

There are more than 10,000 contain-ers lost at sea every year.

Clockwise from left:cargo container . . .medical containers . . . chemical con-tainers . . . humidor.

2135 Engineers Road, Hauppauge, NY 11788 Tel. 631-427-3898 Fax. 631-427-3902 info@rotronic-usa.com

Why the need to measure the relativehumidity, temperature and Carbon Dioxide?In addition to ensuring physicalprotection of its contents, a con-tainer can maintain a certain tem-perature and/or a certain controlledatmosphere. For example, thetransportation of dried, fresh ordeep freeze food requires a mixtureof different conditions including acool or cold temperature and lowrelative humidity. Certain goodslike fruit and vegetables produceheat and Carbon Dioxide and con-sume oxygen during the trans-portation. In such cases it isnecessary to exchange the stale airin the container with fresh andwell-temporised air or a special gasatmosphere in order to delay theripening process.

For air cargo, special containerformats have been developed tomake optimal use of the roundshape of an airplanes loading space.

In addition to the examplesmentioned above, there are hun-dreds of container types for otherspecialized purposes: liquids, gasesunder pressure, aggregates forpower, water treatment, compres-sion stations for gas pipelines,exhibition stands, sanitary andaccommodation, workshops andso on. All of them have a commonneedthe control of specificparameters.

HistoryWood packing cases were first usedin the 18th century. These forerun-ners of todays metal, standardizedcontainers accelerated the transferof goods from railway to horse-drawn vehicles. In the 1920s, theBritish Railway Clearing House(RCH) defined the first general standard for containers to allow theeasy transfter between differentrailway companies. In 1956, anAmerican named Malcolm McLeanis credited for building the first con-tainer ship, the SS Ideal-X whichsailed on its maiden voyage fromNewark to Houston carrying 58containers.

McLean is regarded as theFather of Containerization. Whenhe was a small-scale hauler at theend of the 1930s at the port ofHoboken, he had the idea to starn-

R O T R O N I C H U M I D I T Y F U N F A C T S

dardize goods transport by avoid-ing the constant loading andunloading from one means oftransport to another.

The benefits in terms of speed-ing up the shipping of containerswere obvious and led to a revolu-tion. This new mode of containertransport ultimately cut the cost ofloading freight by 90%.

In 1961, the InternationalOrganization for Standardization(ISO) defined the first internation-ally accepted dimensions for theISO container still in use today.

In the year 2000, MalcolmMcLean was awarded the titleMan of the Century by the Inter-national Maritime Hall of Fame, just one of many awards for hisachievements throughout his life.

Container steamship Ideal-X, built in 1944 as the tanker Potrero Hills.

Malcolm McLean pioneerof containerization.