Archive for January, 2009

Yesterday we discussed what was meant by new/ex-factory or once used containers. Today, as promised sees the turn of the second hand container. When you consider that only one in five containers arriving on our shores go back into shipping, you get some idea of how vast the second hand domestic market for shipping containers actually is.

The new/once used/ex-factorycontainers we discussed yesterdayare obviously suitable for shipping but what about if you want to buy a second hand shipping container for shipping goods abroad – what should you look for?

Just because a second hand container is on the domestic market, it does not mean itcan not be usedasa cargo container taking goods abroad. If the container is still structurally sound and carries a CSC plate in date – usually on the doors of the container – it can be shipped internationally.

CSC stands for “Container Safety Convention” and the plate, pictured above, features as the equivalent of a passport for the container to be shipped internationally. The CSC plate is issued initially for 5 years after the date of manufacture of thecontainer and from thereonafter the container must be examined every 30 months in order to keep the plate up to date.

Some buyers use the CSC plate as an assurance that the shipping container is suitable for domestic secure storage, as it means it has been independantly inspected within the previous two-and-a-half years – but, a lot can happen to a container within that time, and so just because there is a valid CSC plate it does not guarantee that the container is still wind and watertight.

Tomorrow we will discuss what to look for when buying a second handshipping containerfor domestic storage. In the meantime I hope that this blog has gone some way to explaining what a CSC plate is for those of you who wish to ship goods abroad.