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Examining the Intricacies of Containerized Cargo

After the disruptions brought on by COVID-19, forward-thinking companies are asking whether they know enough about containerized cargo.

Shipping Containers

In the U.S., supply chain disruptions caused by COVID-19 have eased, leaving in their wake memories of understocked retail shelves and extended delivery schedules. Evidencing the transoceanic component was the broadcasted spectacle of flotillas of container ships, anchored in coastal waters, awaiting days-delayed permission to come into port. 

Companies that engage in transoceanic commerce should strategize to reduce their vulnerability to supply chain disruptions, whether caused by pandemics, natural disasters, geo-political upheavals, or other factors. Whereas such strategizing encompasses a multitude of factors, it needs to reflect that a major percentage of containerized cargo consists of packaged, unitized goods.

Containerization does not change the fundamentals of the physical aspects of the packaging-transportation relationship. What containerization does is apply that relationship across multiple modes (hence the name, intermodal container). The motto goes, “Package to survive the toughest mode.” Assuming that the motto makes sense, it leaves unanswered the question, “what is the toughest mode?” In all cases, there is a water component (ship), bookended by land components (rail and/or truck).

Land-transported cargo is subjected to shock, vibration, and compression, enacted along the truck or railcar’s longitudinal, lateral, and vertical axes. The forces manifest through continuous travel, in addition to accelerations and decelerations. As straightforward as that sounds, it defies easy modeling and easy simulation. That’s because of the many ways that the forces can vary in terms of magnitude, duration, and sequence. It’s true of the land journey to the departure port and of the land journey away from the destination port—not to mention that the two journeys can have significantly different profiles.

Ocean-transported cargo, too, is subjected to physical forces along three axes. The distinguishing difference is that the travel surface can range from calm to turbulent, depending on the nature of waves. There are nautical terms for the effects: roll, pitch, yaw, sway, heave, and surge. They describe how waves cause a ship to move up-and-down, side-to-side, forward-and-back, and rotate. And should there be any doubt as to how punishing conditions at sea can get, containers have been known to fall overboard.

With that information serving as prelude, we return to the motto, “Package to survive the toughest mode.” Given the variability of each mode, can any given mode confidently be singled out as the toughest? A more serviceable motto might be, “Package to survive the worst that each mode foreseeably will offer.” Worst-case-scenario plans inherently embody a margin-of-safety. In the post-COVID-19 era, it’s prudent to ask whether prior margins should be increased, or otherwise modified. What follows are some considerations.

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