The time of producing a shipping container is insignificant due to the highly automated procedure including assembling the steel walls and drying the paint. According to the data from Drewry, factories have produced 3,368,000TEU worth of equipment in the first half of the year; that is, manufacturing ~18,700 shipping containers per day.

Who makes shipping containers?

Shipping containers are virtually manufactured in China, and 8 out of every 10 shipping containers are made by the main manufacturers, CIMC, Dong Fang and CXIC. In China, due to the support of the policy, the Chinese factories are able to produce shipping containers at much lower costs compared to the other countries.

Furthermore, Chinese factories can theoretically work around the clock and even add a second 12-hour shift, which further facilitates the efficiency of manufacturing shipping containers. As a result, it comes out to over 20 shipping containers produced every minute.

Why doesn’t timeline efficiency matter? 

Factories do manufacture shipping containers at an astonishing speed. But the underlying question is: How long does it take between when you place an order and when you put them in service? 

In normal circumstances, the time from order to delivery reportedly takes as little as 6 weeks. However, the pandemic disrupted the market, and therefore the lead time of shipping containers has soared to one to two quarters. Lots of American shippers encountered the dilemma of no available shipping containers.

Brian Sondey, CEO of Triton International explained: “The most recent shipping container order would be for delivery through the end of September, and the customer probably would pull equipment into their fourth quarter to help them with ongoing operational disruptions.”

SOURCE: FREIGHTWAVES