Archive for November, 2009

Shipping Container Homes – 10 reasons why you should consider them

Monday, November 23rd, 2009

There has been a rise in the number of people that use shipping containers to make houses and other community buildings. Architects have started designing more projects that rely on shipping container conversions for prestigious sites.

But why should you choose a shipping container as the basis for your building?

  1. Shipping Containers are readily available with over a million being released by shipping lines each year
  2. They are ecologically friendly – you would be giving something that is essentially an industrial waste product a new lease of life
  3. Shipping containers are weather resistant being made out of corten steel and having water resistant seams and 27mm marine plywood floors
  4. They can be quickly assembled on site
  5. 20ft and 40ft shipping containers can be combined to make larger units quickly and easily
  6. They are structurally very strong – shipping containers are used to support concrete bridges in states such as Utah
  7. Shipping Container conversions can used other recycled materials such as windows and doors
  8. The containers have a good fire resistance rating
  9. The fact that containers are designed for transportation means that they are easy to get onto most sites
  10. On average a shipping container home is 20-50% cheaper than a conventional construction project

In our next post we will look at some shipping container building projects to see just how well containers can be converted and how visually appealing they can be.

Shipping Containers – How they can help with the Floods

Friday, November 20th, 2009

What can Shipping Containers do that can help with the flooding?

The floods in Cumbria have meant that many peoples’ homes and businesses are under water. Whilst the situation is still ongoing there is nothing they can do about their possessions but when the rivers eventually subside and repair work is carried out to their property shipping containers are ideal for emergency container storage for their possessions. Guaranteed to be wind and watertight,shipping containers are designed to withstand marine conditions and so are ideal for secure storage. Businesses can hire shipping container conversions in the form of site offices and site accommodation so that they can carry on working.

Many other countries use shipping containers for emergency accommodation and storage. The Red Cross made use of 20ft containers during Hurricane Katrina both as stores and mobile first aid units. Australia and New Zealand have regularly used Shipping Containers to provide shelter in remote areas. The list goes on. The fact is that the extemely robust nature of shipping containers and the fact that they are designed to be easily transported by air, road, sea or rail makes them ideal for many emergency situations.

As the rain is due again this weekend, the news will focus on all those effected and we can only hope that there is as little damage to life and property as possible. In the clear up that follows let us all hope that whatever help is needed is quickly offered – Shipping Containers will no doubt play their part.

Shipping Containers – History Part 1

Tuesday, November 17th, 2009

Apparently the shipping container came about due to the fact that an American trucker, Malcolm McLean, whilst queuing at Jersey City Pier in 1937, realised that it would be quicker to have the whole truck body lifted onto the ship. 18 years later, he decided on the strength of that light-bulb moment, he bought a war-surplus tanker and equipped it to carry 33 ft containers.

In truth, ship lines and railways had been experimenting with containers for overhalf a century before 1937 but it took someone with the insight of McLean to realise that the real issue was making the transportation of cargo inter-modal – ie in a standard sized container that could move between rail, road and sea transport without the need for lots of manpower and many different sized machines. The standard sized shipping containers meant that the prices of moving goods could be brought down and as a result the cost of many things became more affordable – and more varied – to the customer.

Today, the standard sizes of shipping containersare 40ft and 20ft containers. There are other sizes available such as 8ft and 10ft but these are less common and often more expensive to transport – particularly by sea.

Many ports were developed as a result of shipping containers – such as Felixstowe in Suffolk – able to take advantage of cheap land and good transport links. Nowadays one-and-a-half million 40ft containers arrive at ports throughout the world each week.

One of the by products of this amount of containers is the market for second hand used containers. The excess containers at ports are used for domestic storage, shipping container conversions such as offices and accommodation – even for housing data centres.

Whether or not there is any truth in Malcolm McLean’s “eureka” moment it certainly has had a big impact on all our lives.

Refrigerated Container Hire at Christmas

Monday, November 16th, 2009

Like most shipping containers, refrigerated containers are available for hire. Christmas time with many suppliers needing additional storage is the most popular time period for refrigerated container hire. Perhaps this is not surprising given all the traditional goodies from turkeys to cheese, smoked salmon to luxury icecreams that we eat during the holiday period. Supermarkets and small producers in keeping up with this demand, hire the refrigerated containers between October to January just to fill orders.

Refrigerated containers are ideal as they are easily transportable and can be set at any temperature between -20C to +20C. Most require 3 phase electricity although they can be run off diesel fuelled generators or “gen-sets”. The most common sizes are 20ft and 40ft containers.

For those who have never hired a refrigerated container before there are a few important points to remember.

  • The length of the hire has an impact on the weekly rental cost of the container itself – normally there is a minimum hire period of at least 4 weeks – with the longer the period of hire being the most economic. This is partly due to the fact that the refrigerated container itself needs a pre-trip inspection (PTI) by a refrigeration engineer which ensures that the container itself will be in good running condition prior to being delivered.
  • Haulage. Most hires require that the cost of the haulage from the depot to the delivery site as well as the cost of the haulage back from the delivery site to the depot is paid in advance. This acts as a guarantee that should the customer default on payment the container can be collected.
  • Breakdown. In case of the unit failing, breakdown cover should be provided as part of the hire contract. The speed of this is important as you don’t want to be left with a whole load of frozen turkeys defrosting at the beginning of December.

For those of you considering hiring a refrigerated container for Christmas it would be a good idea to start looking for a company to supply this now if you have not done so already. Many companies have already hired out most of their containers and may therefore be unable to help.

10ft Refrigerated Containers

Thursday, November 12th, 2009
10ft refrigerated containers (reefer) are normally exclusively built for the domestic market.They are available both second hand and new. Most 10ft refrigerated containersrun off a single phase power supply which makes them ideal for a wide variety of uses.It is, however, possible to get 10fts that utilise a 3 phase supply although these are not as readily available. The 10ft refrigerated containersnormally have a solid checker plate rather than a t-bar floor.
There are many additions that you may wish to consider when buying a 10ft refrigerated container such as butchers doors, lighting, curtains, alarms etc. All can be added as per the customer’s requirements.
Second hand 10ft refrigerated container

Second hand 10ft refrigerated container

If you are considering buying a 10ft refrigerated container the following facts may be useful:-

INTERIOR

Length 245cm Width 224cm Height 222cm

Cubic Capacity 13 cu m

Door opening width 224cm Door opening height 218cm

Tare weight 1500kgs Max gross weight 15000kgs

Pallet capacity 5 to 6 depending on type

EXTERIOR

Length 300cm Width 243cm Height 259cm

The downside of 10ft containers is that they are normally more expensive than the more widely available 20ft and 40ft containers as they are not built in such numbers and do not have such a demand in the commercial marketplace.

Shipping Containers used in installation “The Journey”

Wednesday, November 11th, 2009

Last September an exhibition made using shipping containers called “The Journey” was opened in Trafalgar Square. This month this same exhibition opens in the US.

Co-curated by actress Emma Thompson brings the reality of sex-trafficking to public attention. Each of the seven shipping containers shows a different aspect of the life of Elena, a moldovan girl,sold into the sex trade when she was 19.

Shipping Containers are used to house the installation called "The Journey"

Shipping Containers are used to house the installation called "The Journey"

The first shipping container is called Hopes, Dreams and Aspirations and shows the naivity of Elena and how she believed the promises of a good job as a receptionist in the UK. From there a dark container filled with repetitive sounds speaks about the monotony and the violence of the journey to England. A third container is called “Uniform” and projects the viewers face onto the bodies of prostitutes to show the lack of identity of sex workers. The bedroom or workplace is featured in the fourth shipping container and the main focal bed is a filthy bed which pulses up and down. The next container is a clean, neutral space with photographs of people and represents “the customer”. A sculpture is in the sixth container which is entitled the void that leads on the seventh and final container called “Language” in which Elena’s voice is played telling her story and that of other trafficked victims.

Emma Thompson met Elena through the Helen Bamber charity of which she is Chairman. “The Journey” says Emma Thompson, contains a message of hope. “It reveals — as I have learned from Elena and other survivors — the extraordinary resilience of the human spirit. It shows how, with support and care, these courageous women can rebuild their lives”.

Refrigerated Containers – Three Phase and Single Phase Power Requirements

Tuesday, November 10th, 2009

Most refrigerated containers (reefers)sometimes known asambient temperature containers, need a 3 phase power supply to run effectively. This is often found on farms, industrial estates as standard but not in normally in a domestic setting. Most suppliers of refrigerated containers will have the capability of commissioning the container on the customer’s site. However, sometimes, a engineer known to the customer personally might be called in.

It is important to be able togive the following information:-

  • The power requirements for 3 phase are 380/440VAc with a current rating of 32 amp.
  • The circuitshould beprotected by an RCD (Residual Current Device) with a leakage trip level of 30mA
  • Thesocketshould suit a 5 Pin Ceeform 32A conforming to BS4343
  • A minimum of 8m of cable should be supplied for a 20ft unit and 10m of cable for a 40ft unit

New Refrigerated Containers

New Refrigerated Containers

Often customers ask for single phase powered refrigerated containers. The most common size found for this is 10ft. However it is important to note that the 10ft refrigerated containers are often more expensive than a 20ft or even a 40ft. This is because it is not a size commonly used in shipping and any 10ft containers are normally purposely built for the domestic market.

Whilst 10ft refrigerated containers can chill and freeze using a single phase supply, 20ft and 40ft refrigerated containers often struggle to freeze successfully. This is because in order to become single phase the 3 phase refrigeration units are often taken out and replaced with single phase ones that often do not have the capacity to freeze the cubic meterage of a 20ft or 40ft container. As a result the single phase 20ft or 40ft units are often just referred to as chiller containers.

If a 3 phase supply is not (or even no electricity supply at all) available on site but a freezing capacity is still required clip on generators can often offer a solution. In a future post we will discuss the basic facts of clip on generators and what to look for when purchasing.

Shipping Container Conversions – A Community Project – Part Two

Monday, November 9th, 2009

This shipping container conversion project was to consist of 7 second hand 20ft containers joined together to make a large “community centre” in Chiswick.

It is perhaps easiest to think of shipping containers as pieces of lego that can have sides removed and be welded together in order to make a larger building. When planning this there are several points to bear in mind, not least of which is to balance up using new shipping containers over used containers. Whilst second hand containers have the advantage of being more ecologically friendly, it is often more difficult and therefore more expensive, to find a large number have the same specifcation. Essentially what this actually means is that they are built so that the top rails and floor bearers match and so can be married up successfully so that there are no obvious joins. In new containers, this is not a problem because they tend to be all shipped together in a batch and therefore have identical build specification.

Lining up 20ft containers20ft used container with sides cut away

The photos above show images of 20fts used for the conversion both joined and separate so that the importance of lining up the containers can be seen clearly.
Before joining the shipping containers together windows and doors are cut in and the containers lined and insulated. In order to avoid the roof “dipping” the top bars are strengthened and jacked up so that a smooth join can be obtained when they are finally put into position on site. The whole conversion is put together without welding the containers together off site so that any problems can be eliminated.
The next post on this project will deal with the delivery of the containers onto site and the considerations that must be thought of when using cranes etc.
multi-container-build

multi-container-build

Shipping Containers – An Ideal Storage Solution

Thursday, November 5th, 2009
Shipping Containers at Liverpool Firework Display

Shipping Containers at Liverpool Firework Display

On Bonfire night it seems particularly appropriate to discuss the use of shipping containers in connection to fireworks. It may surprise you to know that second hand shipping containers – particularly 20ft containers – are in great demand as secure storage for fireworks. Logically if you think of a shipping container as a steel container you can see that it would not be easily flammable and therefore particularly appropriate for storing fireworks. Most iso containers have a 30 minute fire rating which makes them ideal for the storage of fireworks.
But it is no just the construction of a shipping container suitable fora firework storage container. The fact that you can hire containers for a month at a time for very competitive prices means that they ideal for the short term storage that fireworks often demand. Let us not forget too that shipping containers are easily transported and require little in the way of ground preparation. An even surface is often all that is required.
However, as the picture above indicates, we have not only been asked to provide shipping containers for storage. In January this year we supplied containers to be used as standsto put on boats so that the spectacular firework display to celebrate the end of Liverpool’s year as the European City of Culture. And an amazing display it was too.
Wherever and however you celebrate bonfire night, do be careful and enjoy the fireworks in safety. And maybe, just maybe, the fireworks you see might have been stored at some point in a shipping container.

Shipping Container Conversions – A Community Project – Part One

Wednesday, November 4th, 2009
Groundworks for Chiswick Community Project
Groundworks for Chiswick Community Project

There are many types of shipping container conversions. Shipping Containers themselves, whether new or second hand containers, lend themselves to many projects large or small.Their shape, and the fact that they are madeof weather resistant corten steel, mean that they are very versatile and can be built up in blocksto many different configurations. But how do you start planning such a project?

At the beginning of this year CS Shipping Containers were contacted by Chiswick Horticultural Association to quote – and then to build – a community centre which would be made out of seven second hand 20ft shipping containers. Itwas toconsist of a large open plan space with seperate areas for a kitchen and toilets.

But how do you go from a bare site, then groundworks as pictured above to having a completed project?

This series of posts will follow the progress of the projectfrom when we received the order, the conversion of the individual units at the fabrication plant where the insulation, lighting and heating, toilets and kitchenwere put into the shipping containers, the delivery and craning of the units onto the site, and the assembly itself.

For those planning multi-container conversions, this should give a better idea of what is involved. They will compare the merits of using newshipping containers to used shipping containers, the ways in which containers can be got onto a site with restricted access, as well as general points to consider when planning a conversion.

CS Shipping Containers, Battisford, Nr. Stowmarket, Suffolk, IP14 2HQ | Tel: 0800 043 6311 | Fax: 01449 723189 | Email:

© 2010 CS Shipping Containers | Website design by Netphobia | XML Sitemap | RSS Feed | SEO By Just Search