Original story from VOX.com
With all the talk about freight surcharges, bottlenecked ports, too many containers in one place, not enough in another, it begged the question "how did we get here"? In order to understand the predicament we are in, we must first understand the history of shipping containers.
Pre-covid, we all took for granted these metal containers that took product from one country to another. They were just a part of the "process". Goods were loaded, goods were shipped, and goods were received. Enter a pandemic, and the reality of the ease of these shipping containers comes full-fledge. Whether it's labor shortages, increased costs, or lack of goods produced, we find ourselves completely reliant on, well, a big metal box (Vox.com)
Interestingly enough, the first commercial container was in 1956, but the booming industry didn't really take off until the 80's. As businesses started to figure out the logistics behind the containers, and added technology to use them, the industry boomed. According to Vox.com, the shipping container takes in over a billion dollars per year. Pretty impressive for a metal box.
To read more on the history of shipping containers, visit Vox.com It's a fascinating read with links to an interview between Rebecca Heilweil (Vox reporter) and Marc Levinson (Historian).
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