The use of “Smart containers” has skyrocketed in recent years – a trend that really took hold with the supply chain disruptions that followed the Covid-19 pandemic. Tracking the location of shipping containers around the world has become necessary, desirable – and now affordable – for shippers, vessel operators and box leasing companies.
The container equipment fleet that has been enabled by what is called “global telematics” is forecast to grow six-fold over the next five years, to reach over 10 million units. It is expected to account for as much as 30% of global box inventories by 2027, driven by wider adoption across the dry container fleet. These are the main conclusions drawn from the Container Census & Leasing Annual Review & Forecast 2023/24 report which was published late last week (July 2023) by the respected authority in shipping intelligence, Drewry
[Drewry is an independent maritime research consultancy, based in the UK and offering market insights and advisory services to senior stakeholders across the global shipping industry.]
A container becomes “smart” when fitted with a telematics device that provides real-time tracking and monitoring, enabling operators to increase turn-around time of their containers, thereby improving equipment availability. It also allows clients – those that Drewy refers to as ‘beneficial cargo owners’ (BCOs) – to understand the location and status of their cargo so that they can better control their supply chains.
As technological innovation lowers the cost of devices and enhances their value to both transport operators and shippers, uptake is expected to hasten. There are a number of factors driving this market growth. Supply chain disruption and port congestion that plagued the pandemic era, provided a wake-up call for improved visibility of cargo flows and container fleet management.
Despite weak market conditions, carriers have funds to invest following the recent boom in industry profitability, and see opportunities to improve the efficiency of their operations through the deployment of smart containers.
As we wrote in a previous article (Tracking Devices for Shipping Containers), German shipping line Hapag-Lloyd (the fifth largest in the world) last year became the first to fit tracking and telemetry to all its containers, stealing a march on its competitors. The container vessel operator will equip its entire container fleet with real-time tracking devices, with the equipment upgrade expected to be completed this year.
Digitising container fleets will enable shipping lines to better control maritime supply chain information flows, enhancing their “cargo visibility.” To achieve real change will require further investment to integrate smart containers into carrier IoT systems and collaboration among industry stakeholders in the logistics industry.
A quick Google search will reveal the great number of players supplying container tracking devices. Tracker manufacturers such as Nexxiot and Orbcomm are moving apace and expect tracking to be pivotal for carriers to retain customers.
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