Trillions of dollars in commodities move in and out of our country’s borders every day. From chemicals to oils, automobiles to commercial aircraft, cell phones to medications, the items transported within this multibillion-dollar business require meticulous safeguarding. 

Despite the logistic chain’s high level of technological modernization, the shipping container is nonetheless vulnerable to harm at any moment and in any location along the way.

Many potential causes and different kinds of damage could happen to the container, from minor to huge ones that prevent its proper ongoing usage.

Such a catastrophe that results in product and financial losses and may impact the relationship between customers and their service providers is cargo damage.

Let us discuss some causes and preventions of damage to shipping containers.

Packaging

Packages are vulnerable to damage during transport because of dropping, tricky handling, and vehicle movement. However, damage doesn’t have to be accepted, and several protective packaging materials, such as packing peanuts, padded divider sets, bubble wrap, packing foam, and packing paper, might be helpful.

Adequate packaging procedures are the first step in preventing shipment damage.

Along with ensuring impact protection, avoid excessive compression and slack. The package must be free of any damage, including any tears, dents, bumps, punctures, corners, holes, and water damage. Continually adhere to the maximum weight allowed by the package.

Use appropriate palletizing methods

Space is the enemy when filling containers and stacking pallets. The more room goods have to move or shift around in a box or pallet, the more likely they will experience damage.

Put heavier items on the bottom of pallets and stack boxes in an overlapping brick pattern. Instead of building a pyramid shape out of smaller containers, make shipment units shaped like cubes.

Clarify Labels

Create your labels using sturdy paper. Include information about the maximum weight each object can support before being crushed. Doing this will limit the amount of handling your item experiences when loaded, lowering the risk of damage to shipping containers.

Along with carefully identifying your products, give your comprehensive loading instructions so that the truckers and loaders will handle your cargo appropriately.

Ensure your containers are well-sealed

High-quality wrapping and duct tape are affordable and simple ways to seal a pallet properly. Thanks to seals, your delivered items will stay protected from the elements, chemicals, and scents.

Proper sealing is crucial if the goods you send are sensitive to changes in light or humidity. The correct materials prevent mild damage to shipping containers and keep moisture out.

Use of Dunnage

Various materials, usually wood or matting, are placed among the cargo for ventilation, protection from damage, and, in the case of some shipments, to provide a space in which a forklift truck’s tines may be inserted.

The packaging material known as “dunnage” is used to guard against damage to shipping containers. During transit, it aids in maintaining the position of the containers and cargo. For these reasons, wood blocks, boards, burlaps, and paper are typically employed.

Ensure the dunnage is not damp or constructed of unseasoned wood, as these conditions could lead to moisture and damage. Check the quarantine rules in the port of arrival carefully because they can call for treating or fumigating the dunnage.

Overweight containers

Containers heaped high on enormous vessels carrying anything from car tyres to smartphones are collapsing at an alarming rate, dumping millions of dollars of merchandise to the ocean floor as pressure to hasten delivery increases the danger of safety failures.

Verifying that the allowed stack weights are not exceeded is a crucial step in planning. Any plan is only as good as the data upon which it is based, and masters relying solely on shipping paperwork risk accidentally trimming their containerships incorrectly, which could lead to catastrophic mishaps.

Overweight containers can also destroy the chassis and terminal handling equipment and injure dock employees when containers are being handled in container yards.

Get an efficient containerization procedure

Containerization is the practice of transporting goods in uniformly shaped and sized shipping containers. A steel shipping container may hold almost anything, although they are convenient for transporting produced items. It is a way of distributing commodities that makes use of standard containers.

If necessary, use longitudinal and transversal lashings to avoid vacant spaces. Maintain prudential distance on the doors without loading pressure to reduce the possibility of falling merchandise when the steel shipping container is opened.

Avoid container rain and sweat

The moisture in the air is responsible for creating container rain. Loading cargo containers occurs near the ocean when the air contains more water, and the humidity in the air becomes trapped in the container. Moisture condenses and becomes water in cooler sections of the container as the air in the container settles. When the container is heated again, the condensed water expands, rises, and adheres to the walls and ceiling. Container sweat refers to the wetness on the walls. It then falls to the ground and is referred to as container rain.

If techniques like ventilation, desiccants, and insulation are implemented correctly, they can successfully aid in decreasing the damage to shipping containers caused by container rain.

Contamination of containers

Containers contaminated may be judged unfit for usage. They might contain pests or occasionally have an odour. For instance, a shipping container that once held food can transfer the smell to the subsequent cargo, such as garments.

Containers are treated with fumigants to protect the cargo from insects and other pests. Whether or not these products are odourless, there is always residue left in the container. Serious repercussions may result from exposure to these gases.

Temperature control of a shipping container

Steel shipping containers can attain extremely high temperatures when sunlight and high temperatures are exposed. These severe temperatures can deleteriously influence cargo held inside shipping containers.

Similar to how we insulate our homes to keep out unwelcome heat or cold, insulating a cargo container can assist the interior in keeping a consistent temperature. One can also opt for insulated containers that prevent damage to shipping containers.

Selecting the appropriate steel shipping container is essential to ensure that there are the fewest possible odds of damage to shipping containers. Because damaged items and merchandise are typically unable to be sold, shipping damage can seriously harm profits. A marketplace for shipping containers is where you can buy suitable containers. Buyers and sellers can purchase and sell cargo containers on the e-commerce trading platform BOXXPORT.