The first container shipped in April 1956. Since then, they’ve become a standard means of freight transportation and facilitated national trade. Shipping containers offer reliable and easy means of transporting goods. They are exceptionally strong and theft-resistant and constructed to withstand the most severe weather. Because of the development of shipping containers, cargo is sealed, protected and safe. The chance of pilfering and damage throughout the various stages of conveyance is minimized significantly. The amount of labor necessary for loading and unloading has reduced, leading to major changes in port cities worldwide. Rather than manpower, cranes are handling the work and ports have needed to grow to provide for larger ships and more extensive loading facilities. The innovation of shipping containers has trimmed the expense of international trade and shortened shipping time.
Over the course of a single century, the use of shipping containers grew to encompass 90% of the transport of the world’s cargo. The ease of fast and safe delivery of millions of goods each and every day has changed the world. This single invention shaped globalization and the world economy. Over recent years, shipping containers have found new purposes. When shipping containers reach the end of their function at sea, they were originally abandoned. Since they are constructed for durability, these containers remained. Ingenuity stepped in and there are now a very long list of innovative ways that shipping containers are being offered a brand new purpose and becoming useful again for years to come. From sheds and houses to playgrounds, cafes, stores and even bridges, containers continue to offer exceptional benefits. I still can’t believe there are shipping container homes!