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transport by David and freight handling Lowe All sorts of containers • Containers, as we think of them in this column, are usually the type of freight box complying with ISO-approved dimensions. But the age-old definition of the word container means far more than this. In fact, it can mean anything into which things {goods or freight, for example) are put and with this thought in mind we have a vision of the containers manufactured by the Export Packing Service Group.
A recent visit to the EPS Midland Division works at Banbury gave me the opportunity to see a wide variety of goods, in sizes from the minute to the enormous, being prepared and packed for export in an even wider variety of containers.
In a location which is central to the main manufacturing plants of the British motor industry it is not surprising that a large portion of the goods handled are connected with this industry. CKD cars, trucks and agricultural machinery from the leading Midland manufacturers are packed into cleverly designed and extensively researched packing containers. The containers are usually packed with groups of items, for example Rover 2000s are packed six cars to six containers, a body, engine and transmission unit in each, but none contains a complete car.
On the BMC lines engines are packed into containers which are then filled with other components until hardly a cubic inch space is left.
A large number of Chrysler Arrow range cars the Hillman Minx and Hunter, Singer Gazelle and Vogue) are packed and shipped. In the storage racks of the warehouse where these models are handled I saw just about every component which goes into the building of a car, even down to the smallest nylon and plastic washers. All these items are made up into sets in polythene bags and gradually built up in accordance with packing manuals until large groups of prepacked units are finally fitted into the container for shipment. In this case they are in 48 car sets, that is 48 complete cars in 48 containers but again no single complete car in any one.
New packs for this range of cars have recently been introduced by EPS to meet tho new shipping cube discount requirement. Thi new packs also have the added advantages o saving time and labour and simplifyini internal storage problems.
EPS are at present doing development wor on the preparation of Land-Rovers for packin! into ISO-type freight containers. The vehicle are delivered to Banbury complete—in fac they are driven down by road, then strippei and prepared for packing.
Although I mentioned • the wide variety c "containers" used by EPS this does not irnpl that they are not involved with conventiore freight containers. They are, indeed, ver involved and do send out a large amount c goods packed direct into these containers. large shipment which was recently in th news was the consignment of Chrysler cars containers by road to Teheran {CM May 1 Thirty vehicles were involved in the movemer which was carried out by Iran Containers Ltd.
Air-freight containers are also manufac tured by EPS. Using a new type of glassfibr sandwich construction developed by EPS th containers weigh only one-third of conventional air-freight container of Gamow able size. Impact tests were carried out whic showed the new material to withstan impact better than tin, plywood or 15 sw aluminium.
EPS have developed, through their researc and development company, many products t improve packaging and protection of goods i containers. Foamclad is an example; this is polyurethane foam which is injected into th packed container, filling every cavity an shaping itself exactly to the form of th articles in the container. It withstand extremes of heat and cold and its resilienc makes it ideal for packing delicate equipment which might be damaged by vibration c impact.
Another product used, but not rnanufac tured, by EPS is Kushion Kraft, made b Abbotts Packaging Ltd. This material is mad up of piles of soft tissue-like paper into strong cushion packing. It is embossed s that a series of air pockets is created. Fu container loads of small delicate good have been packed by EPS using Kushio Kraft as a wrapper.