Through the efforts of many designers,
builders and eco organizations, the
surplus of shipping containers from China
has diminished greatly.
The result of two years of publicity and
awareness has stimulated a growing
trend to construct housing, offices, and
apartments using the base of the standard
Shipping Container.
The exposure of the problem, combined
with the incredible strength and ease of
shipping container based construction
has truly turned the problem into one
of the fastest growing building trends
globally....lemons to lemonade.
Beginning The Trend
The first person to thank for the Shipping
Container Revolution is a man named
Malcom McLean, who, in 1956 changed
the world by inventing the first shipping
container concept, which not only brought
the cost of loading and unloading down
90%, but speeded the loading process of
a ship, from days to just a few hours.
It wasn’t until the mid 1970’s that
containers became standard on every
ship globally. The US Military began
demanding them for their shipments and
supplies globally, and the success was
so great the shipping companies had
no option.
Thus, the ISO Shipping Container was
fully born, legitimate and standardized as
we see it now. Fill it at the factories; truck
it to the ship; load it 5-10 containers high;
unload at the destination port; load onto
another truck or rail car, then off load
at a warehouse near you.
The Strongest Box In
The World
So what is this incredible box that faces
wind, rain, salt, typhoons, extreme weight,
dropping and bumping for years?
The common ISO Shipping container is
20’ or 40’ long; 8’ wide; and 8’6” tall. The
taller version named HQ, which means a
High Cube (HQ) is the same dimensions
but 1 foot taller. 20x8x9’6” or 40x8x9’6” A special stronger steel named Corten
steel that won’t rust or corrode.
Mold resistant
The Corten steel is used inside
and
out and is also stronger than
normal steel
A 1.24” plywood
of hardwood
floor
made
Either teak, birch, or keruing laminates
to withstand tons of internal weight
Caterpillar House
is located in Lo Barnechea, Santiago
de Chile, Chile, and was designed by
Sebastián Irarrázaval.
The home overlooks a dry landscape,
and was designed for an art collector,
using twelve 20 foot and 40 foot
shipping containers.