UNIT45 hits 1000 mark

European 45ft container specialist aims for 1,000 boxes by end 2005

UNIT45 BV, the Dutch 45ft container specialist, is rapidly expanding its leasing fleet. From zero in April 2003, it will pass the 1,000 mark in June 2005 with its latest delivery of newbuild containers from China and is now adding approximately 100 containers every month. According to Managing Director Jan Koolen, UNIT45 should have over 1,500 containers in its fleet by the end of the year:

 “ This lease fleet is important to us in several respects. For example, it enables us to meet the short-term or immediate equipment needs of our existing customers. It also allows us to provide containers to those operators who are currently using 20ft and 40ft containers but who either need 45ft units for specific customers or who want to trial these larger boxes before committing to a volume order.”

 “While North European shortsea shipping companies are already very familiar with 45ft palletwide boxes, we see a huge new market in the Mediterranean and amongst intermodal rail operators who are currently using swapbodies.”

 “We have also noticed strong interest in these units from ro-ro shipping lines who have realised that in certain circumstances, 45ft containers offer advantages over trailers even in ro-ro applications. With our lease fleet, we now have the opportunity to allow these companies to conduct their own trials.”

 UNIT45 designs its own containers and specialises in 45ft palletwide units. Sourcing these from China, most are sold to leading North European shortsea and intermodal customers, explains Mr. Koolen:

 “We design the containers, place the orders, supervise construction and ensure that they meet all of the necessary international certification and customer requirements. Typically, our customers will order batches of anything from 50 to 250 containers and do not want to be involved in the complications of supervising construction and transporting units themselves.”

 “Most of our customers opt for our standard 45ft design, 9ft 6in high and manufactured using high-strength steels to achieve maximum payloads.  This unit can accommodate 33 Euro pallets and through the use of the patented Euro corner castings, is perfectly legal when being trucked within Europe.”

UNIT45 always felt that it should have a small fleet of containers to service the immediate and short-term needs of its customers. However, such has been the demand from companies wanting to buy containers that slotting in orders for UNIT45’s own account has proved difficult, reveals Bob Walker, Director - Unit 45 UK Ltd, who is responsible for Sales.

 “Every time we placed an order on our own behalf, along would come a customer wanting containers ‘quickly’. Consequently, we would sacrifice our own orders to free up earlier production and delivery slots. We sold over 6,000 containers in 2004, three times the number we had anticipated 12 months earlier. In 2005, we estimate that we will sell over 4,000 units, not counting those we are adding to our own fleet.”

 “Quoting a variety of operational and financial leases, from short term to long term, we are able to offer our customers’ all sorts of possibilities.”

 “With this growing fleet of 45ft containers available for lease, we should be able to meet our customers’ ‘we need them tomorrow’ requirements from our own Europe-based pool.”

The 45ft palletwide container is now the dominant piece of equipment in North European shortsea and intermodal operations. Because it is able to load 33 pallets, it competes on level terms with 13.6m trailers. They can be stacked up to seven high, with lifting/securing points at both 40ft and 45ft positions, pose no problems for port and terminal operators. They are easily carried on shortsea container vessels and inland waterway barges, many of which are now being designed around this 45ft long, 2.5m wide unit.

UNIT45 is also developing new designs including a curtain-sided container and a reefer. Prototypes of both are now in service with selected customers.

The curtain-sider is seen by many European intermodal operators that compete head-to-head with trailers as important, because a significant number of companies still insist on side-access.

45ft reefer containers able to carry 32 pallets are now relatively commonplace but because most 13.6m reefer trailers can load 33 pallets, the challenge is on to design a 45ft container that can do the same. To date, this has only been achieved by allowing the refrigeration unit to extend beyond the front end frame. While such units are still road-legal, operators recognise that the risk of damage to the reefer unit is increased.