Shipping containers are a basic necessity for distribution of goods throughout the world. In the United States, shipping containers are actually becoming an environmental issue. We have become a society of import rather than export. We export so little, that it actually cheaper for shippers to manufacture new shipping containers than to ship empty or partially filled containers back to their origin.
As a result, hundreds of thousands of empty containers sit litter the landscape of many port cities and areas around inland freight transit terminals.
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Port of New York and New Jersey on the New Jersey
Turnpike. In the first eight months of 2010, the port saw the equivalent
of 700,000 more full 20-foot containers enter than leave.
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Container Home in Jakarta
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Resourceful people have been turning shipping containers into makeshift homes for years. In recent years, there has been a surge of interest shipping containers from architects and designers. They are modular and can be stacked and connected. And best of all, containers are a relatively inexpensive (some start at $800 a container).
The low cost and modularity makes a shipping container for temporary disaster relief shelters.
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Re:START by the Buchan Group, 1 year after a 6.3-magnitude earthquake struck Christchurch, New Zealand
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Container construction is not limited to short term solutions. Containers can be used to build permanent structures.
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| The original Container City project, located at Trinity Buoy Wharf, in the heart of London's Docklands. Completed in 5 months in 2001, Container City I was originally 3 stories high providing 12 work studios across 4,800 sq ft. |
Container structures can be completely fitted out on the interior. Containers can be modified to add modern amenities you would expect from
a home or an office (electricity, plumbing, finished interiors).
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| This is what the inside of a Container home @ Cove Park, Scotland. Not to shabby, eh? |
It doesn't have to look like a container on the outside either, the exterior can be clad with standard building materials.
Shipping containers have been used to build luxury homes and offices, and even a Starbucks.
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Starbucks opened its first reclaimed container coffee shop just south of Seattle in Tukwila, Washington on 12/13/11.
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| The
store is also the first LEED-certified
structure in Tukwila. |
Want to see and learn more about Container structures?
Here are some links to helpful sites:
General Knowledge:
Architects, Designers, Builders & Developers:
Wow! So even Starbucks has now embraced the trend of using shipping containers to make their store!
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