How to find a container for shipping: effective tips for sea freight

Searching for a container for shipping — useful tips and recommendations for effective organization of sea delivery

Shipping cargo in containers is popular for many reasons — versatility, absence of multiple product reloading, simplified documentation, ensuring a high degree of safety, and others. Such packaging is used for delivery by all types of transport. Are you faced with the need to search for a container and don’t know where to start?
There are several options, for example, to contact a freight forwarding company and delegate this task to them or to reach out to shipping companies directly. If you don’t know where to find the contacts of either, and time is pressing, use the opportunities of the freight exchange com-stil.com. How to do this and much other useful information can be found in the article.

What you need to know about sea cargo transportation

Containers are used for transporting various categories of products, from oversized items to raw materials and gases. Depending on the type of goods being transported, they are divided into general-purpose and specialized containers. Based on what you need to transport, the type of container is selected, and depending on the batch of goods, its size. Partial loading is also possible. Booking a container is called booking. This means that you agree in advance with the shipping company about the delivery of your cargo.
The cost of delivering the product is called freight and includes the price for using the container. All rights and obligations of the carrier and cargo owner are specified in the transportation contract. If you are receiving, rather than sending, cargo in a container, pay attention to the time given to free it. This refers to the free period, and how long it lasts depends on the conditions set by the specific shipping line.

You can also rent packaging from a container operator. In this case, you pay them for the temporary use, while other expenses are covered by the company that directly carries out the transportation. When you are provided with the packaging, check before loading to ensure it is technically sound and has access to sea delivery.

Types of containers
There is a classification of packaging for transportation into various categories based on the following criteria: purpose, size, load capacity, and design features. There are also designations that indicate the degree of wear.
Depending on the size, the following main types of containers are distinguished by a certain number of feet:
●    10 — rarely encountered, with a length of 3 m;
●    20 — the most popular format at 6 m, easily fits 2 units on a container ship, moved using a manipulator;
●    40 — accommodates large batches of cargo and is a rational and cost-effective way of delivery, with a length twice that of a 20-foot container;
●    45 — a container at 13 m, which is rarely encountered and has a high cost.

The most popular among them are 20 and 40-foot dry cargo containers designated as GP (General Purpose).

Depending on design features, the following modifications are distinguished:
●    Dry Cube (DC) — standard container with a height of 2.6 m;
●    Pallet Wide (PW) — 6 cm wider than the previous type in the list and allows for more cargo to be transported at once due to its expanded capacity;
●    Double Doors (DD) — with double doors on both end sides, which speeds up and facilitates loading;
●    High Cube (HC, HQ) — a tall container that is 0.3 m higher than standard;
●    Open Top (OT) — suitable for oversized items, covered with a tarpaulin on top instead of a hard roof;
●    Side Door (SD, OS) — with an open side door for easier loading;
●    Hard Top (HT) — with a removable hard roof;
●    Flat Rack (FR) — a platform without side walls for oversized items.
The abbreviations of the names are indicated in parentheses.

By purpose, sea containers are of the following types:
●    General-purpose — used for small packaged, unpackaged goods, and oversized products.
●    Bulk — equipped with loading and unloading hatches. Suitable for large batches of small cargo, for example: grain, plastic pellets.
●    Platforms — used for heavy and long cargo.
●    Thermally insulated containers — suitable for products sensitive to temperature fluctuations.
●    Ventilated — used for goods that require constant air circulation.
●    Tank containers — relevant for gaseous and liquid substances.
This type of packaging is used in multimodal transportation. It can be easily transferred from one type of transport to another. For example, after delivery to the port, it is transferred to container trucks for dispatch to the destination.

Sea containers are also divided into classes that show the degree of wear, and based on this criterion, the following positions differ:
●    A — new packaging without signs of wear;
●    One Trip — used once, may have insignificant scratches;
●    WWT — without holes, leak-proof, hermetic;
●    B — not new, but suitable for transportation.
The above information will help you determine the best way to deliver specific products.

Searching for a sea container using a freight exchange

A specialized website can be the only and most effective way to find carriers and freight forwarders. Here, it is convenient to sort requests from companies, choose something suitable, and not overpay. A large number of offers also positively influences the decision-making process.  
You can start exploring the site from any category of your choice, com-stil.com helps find containers, any type of transport, or carriers, freight forwarders, and logisticians. In a separate section, it is easy to ask questions and get answers.

Working with the freight exchange website may look as follows:
●    Searching among existing offers from transport organizers. Sorting by loading and unloading locations, for example, significantly reduces the time spent.
●    Creating your own request. This will attract performers without additional effort on your part. Publish an offer with cargo and wait.

Combining these search methods will help achieve the desired result in a short time.

Tracking sea containers
One of the main questions that concerns cargo owners is the ability to determine the real location of the goods at a specific moment. This is normal, as the product travels a considerable distance by sea. When speed of delivery and safety of cargo are a concern, it is important to know where it is at a specific moment. Fortunately, this can be easily done using the Container Tracker system.

To search, use the container number, which consists of 11 characters: the first four letters indicate the carrier company, and the remaining 7 are a numeric identifier. There are many specialized websites where you can find out the location of the cargo. The choice is yours, which platform you want to use. Searching by bill of lading or booking number is also possible.

Ways to save on sea cargo delivery

The desire to save sometimes borders on absurdity and serious risks. Therefore, we will not consider dubious ways to cut costs and focus on the safest and most effective methods. The shipper cannot directly influence the cost of sea delivery but can choose a company that cares about this aspect.
For example, the transport organizer selects optimal routes and ports to reduce time and fuel costs. Or divides a large batch of cargo into several smaller ones to ensure compact packaging and storage. Sea delivery organizers should also take care of effective inventory management, meaning not to store too much cargo in the warehouse to reduce expenses.

Another way to save on transporting goods by sea is to send products as part of a groupage cargo in a container. In this case, several small batches are combined in one packaging, taking into account their compatibility in characteristics. This way, you do not have to spend on renting the entire container, which is more cost-effective. However, it is essential to consider the downsides of this transportation method: significant time costs, the risk of damage to goods due to combining incompatible cargo, and the duration of document processing.

Use the freight exchange com-stil.com when searching for sea containers absolutely free of charge. This does not obligate you to anything, which is important. Create an account and visit the site when you need to send or receive cargo. Searching for carriers, freight forwarders, and logisticians will not take much time, and importantly, there are many options available to choose from.

A key feature of sea container transportation is that the transported cargo is placed in universal containers that can be transported not only on sea vessels but also by rail or road. These containers, made of metal, are equipped with all necessary devices that allow them to be transferred to other types of transport. Using containers, it is possible to organize the delivery of cargo weighing up to 26 tons.