HK1111663B

HK1111663B - Shipping container with cargo and method of stowing cargo in a shipping container

Info

Publication number: HK1111663B
Application number: HK08106186.3A
Authority: HK
Inventors: Robert William Alistair Strang
Original assignee: Strang Lpp Nominees Pty Ltd
Priority date: 2005-07-27
Filing date: 2006-07-27
Publication date: 2014-04-11

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to improvements in the stowage of goods, comprising coils, in standard shipping containers and in the transport of goods so stowed.

BACKGROUND

Enormous quantities of goods, including manufactured goods, produce and materials, are daily shipped around the world by land, sea and air in containers of various types. Standard shipping containers as used on seagoing ships, for example, are a familiar sight at sea and on land. The loading of cargo items into such containers and their subsequent unloading, is a major activity involving much expenditure of labour and money. An important problem facing all those involved in shipping of goods is containing the cost of such loading and unloading.

Much of the cost of loading and unloading arises from the need to secure cargo items in their containers securely, to avoid damage in transit. Given the wide variety of goods that must be transported, this can be a skilled process consuming much time and effort.

It is also important in many cases that cargo items not move within their containers during transit. In sea transport, any inadvertent shifting of cargo due to ship motions can have adverse effects on ship stability and hence safety.

Materials such as timber used to secure heavy loads in containers can present quarantine and disposal problems at their destinations.

An issue widely recognised in the sea transport industry, at least, is that there can be a mismatch between cargoes and container sizes on particular journey legs. For example, where cargo movements are such that "40-foot" containers arrive at a particular port in numbers greater than are required for cargoes leaving that port, there can be excessive numbers of "dead legs" for such containers, i.e. Journey legs where the containers are carried empty. Enhancing the ability of such containers to be loaded with other cargo items could in such a case lead to substantial cost savings by reducing dead legs. More generally, it is always desirable to enhance the flexibility of loading of containers. For example, making it easier to use a small container where a large one was previously required, or vice versa, allows better matching of cargoes and container availability.

DE-U-8407246 discloses reusable packaging with a pallet.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a method for stowing cargo in a standard 20-foot (6m) or 40-foot (12m) shipping container, characterised by positioning, in designated positions in the container, cargo items, each of which comprises a coil and weighs more than 20% of a rated payload of the container, and cargo restraining means comprising spacer elements which support the coils from below and closely conform with cylindrical shapes of the coils, and closely fit a gap between opposing sidewalls of the container, and spacer elements which separate the coils from each other and from end walls of the container, each of said spacer elements being a substantially rigid block of expanded plastics foam, the spacer elements being shaped and proportioned and positioned with the coils in the container such that an assembly comprising the coils and spacer elements, in which each coil has a longitudinally oriented axis, is closely confined between end walls of the container and contacts inner surfaces of the container to be restrained from movement relative to the container during movement of the container.

Preferably, each shaped block is a block of expanded polystyrene foam.

During movement of the cargo container, inertia forces arising in the cargo items due to the cargo container movement are transmitted to the cargo container structure through the shaped blocks.

Substantially all of the weight of at least one of the cargo items may be transferred to the cargo container structure through shaped blocks of members of a set of said spacer elements.

Thus, in practice of the invention, the substantially rigid spacer elements, comprising the expanded plastics foam blocks, actually transmit loads, dynamic and static, between the cargo items and the structure of the cargo container. The term "dunnage" is normally used in the art for materials and items which are not firmly attached to cargo and are used to protect the load, so that the spacer elements do not function merely as dunnage. This is despite much teaching away from the use of such materials in the art of transporting substantial loads in cargo containers.

The term "standard shipping container" is in this specification to be taken to include in particular containers of the type used in large numbers for transport of goods by sea. These containers are the subject of International Standards Organisation (ISO) standards and are available in various sizes. The invention is concerned with such containers which have external sizes as follows:

(a) length: 20 feet (6096 mm); width 8 feet (2438 mm); height 8 feet 6 inches (2591 mm) or 9 feet 6 inches (2896 mm); and
(b) length: 40 feet (12192 mm); width 8 feet (2438 mm); height 8 feet 6 inches (2591 mm) or 9 feet 6 inches (2896 mm).

A said spacer element may be adapted to be lowered over a said cargo item from above and in use to be retained thereon without substantial relative movement between the spacer element and the cargo item. When said spacer element is lowered over said cargo item a portion of said cargo item is accessible from above.

In an embodiment of the invention, a spacer element has a lower surface adapted to lie directly on a floor surface of the cargo container or on dunnage on said floor surface and an upper surface shaped to closely conform with a portion of at least one cargo item and to support the at least one cargo item.

In either of these embodiments, a spacer element may have upright faces that in use of the spacer element lie closely adjacent to opposing upright inner surfaces of the cargo container. A single spacer element may, for example, substantially fully span the internal width of the shipping container.

At least one spacer element which bears cargo item weight may be positioned within the cargo container and a cargo item subsequently lowered onto said spacer element. Said cargo item may be loaded through end doors of the cargo container. Cargo items may thus be placed on spacer elements after the spacer elements have been positioned in the cargo container. It may not be possible for some wide cargo item handling vehicles to position cargo items in the container owing to inadequate reach and inability to enter the cargo container. The method may accommodate this problem by a modification in which while the cargo item is moved into the cargo container by wheeled support means, said wheeled support means is moved by a separate vehicle so that the separate vehicle can remain outside the cargo container.

The method of the invention can be applied for example (and is advantageous) where a cargo item comprises a coil of strip material, e.g. steel.

In practice of the method of the invention, cargo items may be maintained in their designated positions in the cargo container by spacer elements substantially without the use of additional restraint means.

In one way of practising the method, spacer elements but not cargo items contact internal upright walls of the cargo container.

A preferred embodiment of the invention provides a method for transporting a set of cargo items between two locations in a cargo container including the steps of:

at a first location, stowing a set of cargo items in a cargo container by a method disclosed above;
moving the cargo container to a second location and unloading the cargo items and the spacer elements; and
disposing of the shaped blocks of the spacer elements by submitting the shaped blocks to a recycling process.

In many destinations where cargo containers are sent, there is existing infrastructure for the recycling of expanded plastics foam, including particularly polystyrene foam, without significant environmental nuisance.

According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a combination comprising a standard 20-foot (6m) or 40-foot (12m) shipping container and, stowed in the container, cargo items, each of which comprises a coil having a longitudinally oriented axis and weighs more than 20% of a rated payload of the container, and cargo restraining means comprising spacer elements which support the coils from below, closely conform with cylindrical shapes of the coils, and closely fit a gap between opposing sidewalls of the container, and spacer elements which separate the coils from each other and from end walls of the container, each of said spacer elements being a substantially rigid block of expanded plastics foam, the spacer elements being shaped and proportioned and positioned with the coils in designated positions in the container such that an assembly comprising the coils and spacer elements is closely confined between end walls of the container and contacts inner surfaces of the container to be restrained from movement relative to the container during movement of the container.

Preferably, each shaped block is a block of expanded polystyrene foam.

A said block may be adapted to be lowered over a said cargo item from above and in use to be retained thereon without substantial relative movement between the spacer element and the cargo item.

The invention is used in the restraint and stowage of loads that are larger than is usual in applications of expanded foam materials and in particular polystyrene foam. In a further embodiment of the invention, there is provided a method of stowage of cargo items, comprising coils, in a cargo container wherein spaces around the cargo items and within the cargo container are at least partly filled with spacer elements so as to substantially prevent movement of the cargo items in the cargo container, wherein dynamic forces on the cargo items associated with motion of the cargo container and weight forces on the cargo items are transmitted to the container structure through the spacer elements, and wherein the spacer elements transmitting such forces each comprise a shaped block of expanded plastics foam material, preferably polystyrene.

An apparatus can be used in stowing of said cargo items, the apparatus comprising:

elongate means having at a front end means for supporting a cargo item and at a rear end means for connection to a part of a vehicle which can be raised and lowered;
chassis means having ground engaging wheels said chassis means being adapted to support the elongate means at a position between the said front and rear ends.

The chassis means may include means for lifting and lowering said elongate means.

The apparatus may have a counterweight attached to the rear end of the elongate means.

Preferably, the counterweight has openings to receive tines of a forklift vehicle and wherein the counterweight is attached to the elongate means so as to be pivotable relative to the elongate means about both transverse and vertical axes.

In this specification, the term "set", used in respect of a set of spacer elements or cargo items, it is not intended to imply, where there are several members of either type of set, that all such members need be identical.

Preferred embodiments of the invention provide for easier, quicker and cheaper packing and unpacking of shipping containers, with efficient use of available space and avoidance of movement of cargo items within the container, than is available using conventional packing methods. The surprising finding that certain plastics foam materials can be used for the support and restraint of coils of significant weight carried in cargo containers has led to the invention.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a spacer element supporting a coil of steel strip (shown in phantom lines), which is included for background interest only;
Figure 2 is a side view of four spacer elements as shown in Figure 1, in use in the interior of a container (shown in phantom lines);
Figure 3 is a perspective view of two coils of steel strip on pallets and (in phantom lines) a further spacer element, which is included for background interest only;
Figure 4 is a set of three views of the spacer element shown in Figure 3, namely (a) side elevation, (b) end elevation, (c) view from below;
Figure 5 is a perspective view of five spacer elements and coils as shown in Figure 3, in use in the interior of a container (shown in phantom lines);
Figure 6 is a set of three views of a further spacer element namely (a) side view, (b) bottom view, and (c) (left half) an end view and (right half) a cross sectional view, the spacer element being shown in views (b) and (c) covering loads of plate material on stillage elements, which is included for background interest only;
Figure 7 is a perspective view of two further spacer elements in use in the interior of a container (shown in phantom lines), which is included for background interest only;
Figure 8 is a plan view of a possible packing arrangement for a layer of cylindrical cargo items in a container, which is included for background interest only;
Figure 9 is a plan view of a load of cargo items and further spacer elements in the interior of a container (shown in phantom lines), which is included for background interest only;
Figure 10 is a side view of a part of the load of cargo items and of the spacer elements as shown in Figure 8, the part shown being the containers between planes marked "P" and "Q" in Figure 8;
Figure 11 is a perspective view of a shipping container interior space (represented by phantom lines) with coil-type cargo items stowed therein, in accordance with the present invention;
Figure 12 is a perspective view of the shipping container interior space shown in Figure 11, now with one only of the three cargo items shown in Figure 11 in place;
Figure 13 is a side view of a forklift vehicle, portion of a container and an apparatus for assisting in loading the container, which is included for background interest only; and
Figure 14 is a plan view of a container internal space containing three cargo items, shoring timbers and spacer elements which is included for background interest only.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Figure 1 shows a first spacer element 1. Spacer element 1 is generally rectangular, having end faces 2, side faces 3, a bottom face 4 and a top face 5. An upwardly-facing recess 6 has the form of a half-cylinder. Shown in phantom lines in Figure 1 is a coil 7 of strip steel that is received and supported in recess 6. Cutouts 8 are provided to provide access to a central hole 9 of coil 7 for an elongate "sting" (not shown) as is typically used by material handling equipment for lifting and moving coils of steel strip. Also, longitudinal recesses 15 extend along the length of bottom face 4 and are spaced and sized to enable tines of a fork lift (or the like, not shown) to lift the spacer element 1 and contained coil 7 together.

Figure 2 shows a side view of four spacer elements 1 and coils 7 positioned, in the interior of a standard shipping container 12. Container 12 is represented schematically in Figure 2 by showing in phantom lines only the edges of its internal surfaces, so that only the container's interior space is shown.

Elements 1 are sized so that four of them snugly fit in container 12, being restrained from longitudinal movement by the inner end surfaces 13 and from lateral movement the inner side surfaces 14 of container 12. Such movements may be caused by ship motions at sea and need to be resisted for ship stability and safety. The width between side faces 3 of element 1 is close to the width between inner side surfaces 14 and the length of the four elements 1 in combination is close to the length between inner end surfaces 13. With this mode or stowing the heavy and unwieldy cargo items 7, it is quicker and easier to load a shipping container and to unload it, with no need for lashing the items 7 to the interior of the container 12 itself.

Spacer elements 1 are preferably formed integrally from a foamed cellular plastics material such as, for example only, "RMAX Geofoam" polystyrene foam, available under the name "isolite EPS" in Australia from a division of Huntsman Chemical Company Australia Pty Ltd.

This rigid cellular polystyrene material is available in a range of six density classes, with different compressive strengths, and is manufactured to Australian Standard AS1366 Part 3-1992. Grades used by applicants to date are "SL" (nominal density 11 kg/cubic metre and 70kPa compressive stress at 10% deflection) and "M" (nominal density 19 kg/cubic metre and 105kPa compressive stress at 10% deformation). However, it is of course desirable to use a material with a suitable density for the particular application, having regard to the cargo item weights and sizes, likely movements of the container, and the like. Selection does not of itself require inventive effort.

Forming of the elements 1 is preferred to be by foaming in a simple mould (not shown), and more preferably this is done on or close to the site where the coils 7 are to be loaded in container 12. This could be at a steel warehouse or at a container loading facility. Alternatively, the polystyrene foam can simply be purchased in blocks from the manufacturer and cut to shape using suitable known methods (eg hot wire cutting).

It has surprisingly been found that in many practical cases, and with suitable choice of material, no reinforcement of elements 1 is needed even for heavy loads.

Other suitable foam materials may be used

The clearances to be provided between the elements 1 and the inner surfaces 13 and 14 of container 12 are chosen by suitable trial (requiring no inventive activity) to suit the weights of the cargo items involved, the skill of the persons, stowing and unloading the containers, and the equipment available to them.

Figure 3 shows two coils 16 of steel strip, each secured on a suitable pallet 17, each coil 16 and its pallet 17 comprising a cargo item 18. Shown in phantom lines is a further spacer element 19 that can facilitate the stowage of cargo items 18 in shipping containers. Cargo such as cargo items 19 are commonly required to be loaded into shipping containers and are sometimes referred to as "top hats", due to their shape.

Figure 5 shows five spacer elements 19 being used to stow ten cargo items 19 in a shipping container interior space 20 (whose edges are shown in phantom lines, just as in Figure 2). As with spacer elements 1, elements 19 are sized and shaped so as to fit snugly (i.e. with clearances small enough to sufficiently limit load movement Under likely ship motions and large enough for easy loading and unloading) between inner side surfaces 21 of container interior 20 and so that five in combination fit snugly between inner end surfaces 22 of interior 20.

Figure 4 shows spacer element 19 in three views. Element 19 is generally in the form of a rectangular prism and has two holes 23 within which coils 16 are received, and a rectangular recess 24 within which pallets 17 are received. In use, and by contrast to spacer element 1 whose load is lowered into recess 6, spacer element 19 is lowered over two cargo items 18 from above and partially surrounds items 18. Spacer element 19 thereafter maintains the desired relative positions of the items 18. A fork lift (not shown) can pass its tines into recesses 25 in the base of element 19 to access pallets 17 and lift the complete combination of items 19 and spacer element 18 for placement into container interior 20.

As with elements 1, spacer elements 19 are conveniently formed from a lightweight expanded foam plastics material.

It is not essential that the cargo items 18 protrude through the top of spacer element 19. This arrangement simply happens to economize on the material used to form spacer element 19. A similar spacer element (not shown) could simply cover the items 19 completely (except at the bottom), if required.

Figure 6 shows a spacer element 30 that is also open-bottomed and in use towered over a cargo item 31 from above. Cargo item 31 comprises three layers 32 of flat material (eg metal plates or billets for hot rolling) supported on stillage elements 33 in known manner. Spacer element 30 is generally rectangular in overall form, having opposing side faces 33, end faces 34, a top face 35 and a bottom face 36. A recess 37 is formed in bottom face 36 and is shaped and sized for close-fitting containment of cargo item 31 as shown. Recesses 38 are provided also in bottom face 36 for tines of a fork lift or the like, so that once element 30 has been positioned over and lowered onto cargo item 31 the complete combination of spacer element 30 and cargo item 31 can be lifted and conveniently loaded into and unloaded from, a shipping container. The side faces 33 are spaced apart so as to fit between opposing inner side faces of a shipping container to limit undesired movement during transit of the container. Similarly the end faces are spaced so that a specified number of spacer elements 30 can be placed longitudinally in the container with sufficiently small clearance to resist undesired movement in transit.

From the above descriptions of spacer elements 1, 19 and 30, it will be apparent that cargo items beyond the specific items used as examples can be conveniently stowed in containers so as to resist undesired movement therein during transit of the containers. By making the spacer elements at the point of loading, especially by the use of lightweight foamed plastics, an efficient stowing and restraining system can be provided.

Elements 1, 19 and 30 all partially surround their respective cargo items 7, 18 and 31 in use. Figure 7 shows another possibility. A container interior 40 is partially filled, with spacer elements 41 so that cargo spaces 42 and 43 are defined by the spacer elements 41 and the interior surfaces of the container 40. This arrangement permits cargo items, taking up only part of a container interior to be stowed in such a way that their potential movement in the container is limited by the inner sides, floor and (if desired) roof surfaces and (in the longitudinal direction) by the container inner end surfaces and the spacer elements 41. The general principle is followed of substantially filling gaps between opposing inner surfaces of the container, so as to limit undesired cargo movement.

Spacer elements 41 have recesses 44 for tines of handling equipment to ease the task of location them in the container interior 40.

Spacer elements 41 are shown as solid blocks, but could be provided with openings (not shown) where the nature of the particular cargo items permits to minimize weight and usage of material in the spacer elements 41, to provide for air flow (especially in the case of refrigerated containers), etc..

One possible variation, not shown, is to bevel, round off, or taper upright corner edges of spacer elements (such as elements 1, 19, 30 or 41 for example) to ease the process of passing the elements through load openings (eg doors) in containers. The openings are of course close fitting so that some care in alignment is needed.

Figure 11 shows three large coils 100, 101 and 102 (eg of steel strip) stowed in a shipping container internal space 103 in an important way of practising the invention. Internal space 103 is represented by chain-dotted lines as before. The coils are stowed with their axes longitudinally oriented in space 103. They are supported from below on spacer elements 104, 105 and 106 which are cut away to closely conform with the cylindrical shapes of coils 100-102 and which closely fit the gap between opposing sidewalls 107 and 108. Four further spacer elements 109, 110, 111 and 112 are provided firstly to separate coils 100 and 101 and 101 and 102 and secondly to separate coils 100 and 102 from respective end walls 113 and 114. The entire assembly of coils 100 - 102 and spacer elements 109 - 112 and 104 - 106 is closely confined between end walls 113 and 114. No separate restraint of coils 100 - 102 is provided.

Figure 12 is a similar view of container internal space 103 partly loaded, through end doors 115. Spacer elements 109 and 104 are in position, and spacer element 110 is being moved longitudinally (as shown by arrow 116) towards its final position. Coil 100 has been placed on spacer element 104, by means described below, after placement of spacer element 104 in position. Similarly, coils 101 and 102 will be placed on their respective supporting spacer elements 105 and 106 in the same way, after placement of elements 105 and 106 in space 103.

A difficulty with stowing in the way shown in Figure 12 is that it can be impossible for a suitably sized fork lift (or other handling device) to enter space 103. Figure 13 shows a way in which this problem can be overcome. A forklift 120 is used to manoeuvre a wheeled apparatus 121 which has an elongate sting 122 that can pass through coils such as coil 100. A chassis 123 is mounted on wheels 124 and has hydraulic cylinders 125 whereby sting 122 can be raised and lowered (as shown by arrow 126). A beam 127 is mounted at a pivot 128 to sting 122 and is coupled at its opposite (rear) end to a counterweight 129. Coupling of beam 127 to counterweight 129 allows a degree of relative movement between them. Counterweight 129 is adapted to be raised and lowered by forklift 120, which extends its tines 130 into cooperating openings (not shown) in counterweight 129. Hydraulic power for operating cylinders 125 and a cylinder 131 that allows some relative pivoting of beam 127 about sting 122 is taken from forklift 120.

Apparatus 121 can allow heavy weights such as coil 100 to be lifted and manoeuvred into (or out of) a container 132 without itself having to enter container 132. Counterweight 129 reduces the weight to be lifted by forklift 120 when handling coil 100, with wheels 124 acting as a fulcrum. Apparatus 121 allows the use of a forklift smaller than would otherwise be necessary for placement of coil 100 into container 132. This is very helpful, because many dock facilities do not have such large machines. Apparatus 121 can be provided for use only when necessary and allows the use of smaller machines to continue.

Polystyrene spacer elements have the unexpected advantage of surprisingly high friction when in contact with container interior surfaces. Thus, lateral forces on coils 100 - 102 would be transmitted to the floor 133 of space 103 by shear in spacer elements 104, 105 and 106 and friction at their contacts with floor 133, as well as by direct bearing of end faces such as faces 134 on walls 107 and 108. Generally clearances between spacer elements such as 104 - 106 and opposing walls such as 107 and 108 should be as small as practicable, even to the extent of actual contact between the elements and the walls on both sides. However, the effect of friction where cargo items such as coils 100 - 102 are supported from below is to alleviate any ill effects of positive clearances. Clearances can if desired or found necessary be closed by sliding any suitable thin laminar material between spacer elements and walls.

An important point of difference among the various spacer elements described herein is that some are used to resist both the weight of cargo items and lateral forces arising from motions during transport of the cargo container, whereas others resist only the latter type of forces. Spacer elements 1 and 104 - 106, for example, support the weight of cargo items (respectively items 7 and 100 - 102) and also restrain movement of those cargo items in generally horizontal directions in their containers, which movements can arise from dynamic forces associated with motion in a seaway for shipping containers or cornering and acceleration loads in land applications. By contrast, spacer elements 19, 34 and 109 - 112 primarily restrain cargo items against generally horizontal forces, while the weight of the cargo items is taken directly by the floors of their respective containers.

Loads are restrained against horizontal movement in a cargo container in two perpendicular directions. In Figures 2, 5 and 11, container spaces 12, 20 and 103 are shown as being completely filled except for space above the loads, so that both lateral and longitudinal movements are resisted by the spacer elements 1, 19 and 104 - 106 and 109 - 112.

It is possible in principle for only movements in one direction to be resisted by the spacer elements including expanded foam materials, with other means being provided to resist movement in a perpendicular direction. In Figure 14, heavy cargo items 150, 151 and 152 are shown in a container internal space 153 (represented by chain-dotted lines) and are secured against longitudinal movement (i.e. in the direction of arrow 154) by timbers 155. However, they could still move laterally to some degree, and so are restrained against lateral movement by spacer elements 156. Any or all of the cargo items 150 - 152 could of course have their weight supported by spacer elements. Figure 14 is meant primarily to illustrate the above point rather than being practical or preferred.

Figure 8 is a plan view of a container interior 60 (shown in phantom lines) with a: single layer of 65 drum-type cargo items 61 therein. A problem of this arrangement is that the layer of items 61 is not constrained sufficiently by the interior surfaces of the container interior 60 to fully prevent movement of items in transit, with the possibility of damage or leakage. There is a space 62 into which cargo items 61 can move, but which cannot be neatly filled by one or more extra containers 61. A further problem that often arises with cargoes of this type is that one layer does not fully utilize the weight carrying capacity of the container, whereas two full layers would exceed that capacity. Figures 9 and 10 show how these problems can be avoided.

Figure 9 is a similar view to Figure 8, showing how the container, interior 60 can be stowed with an extra 25 cargo items to make 90 cargo items in all, all constrained against excessive movement during transit. Figure 10 shows this cargo as seen in side elevation looking in the direction of arrow "R" in Figure 9, although for clarity only those cargo items between planes "P" and "Q" are shown. To prevent movement within the space 62, a suitably shaped and sized spacer element 63 is positioned therein bearing against some of the cargo items 61 and inner end surface 64. (A spacer element 63, positioned in a designated position as a first step in loading a layer of cargo items 61, has the additional advantage of guiding the building up of the layer with each item in its correct position, so that an intended or designed arrangement and number of items 61 in the layer is achieved.)

In Figure 9, circles without letters indicate cargo items 61 of the bottom layer. Circles with the letter "Y" indicate cargo items 61 that are raised partly out of the bottom layer by being positioned on top of suitably shaped and sized spacer elements 65, of which four are shown in this case. A partial layer of 25 additional cargo items 61, marked "X", is then stacked on top of items 61 of the bottom layer. Undesired movement of the items 61 labelled "X" is prevented by the inner side surfaces 66 of container interior 60 and end barriers formed by the partly-raised cargo items 61 labelled "Y".

Each of spacer elements has the form of two cylinders 67 (that each sit under one cargo item 61) joined by an intermediate section 68. However, this is optional; many other shapes would be possible. Another possibility is to provide spacer elements (not shown) that instead of lifting some cargo items partially out of one layer to form a barrier to movement of items in another layer, are held within one layer and also extend out of that layer to form a barrier against undesired movement of items of another layer. For example, elements having a shape that is a combination of the shape of elements 67 and the cargo items 61 shown above them in Figures 9 and 10 could be used as an alternative to elements 67 to restrain movement of items 61 of the upper layer.

As with the arrangement of Figure 7, the arrangement of Figures 9 and 10 involves a cargo being constrained against undesired movement by a combination of interior surfaces of a container and by spacer elements placed in the container.

Many variations and enhancements may be made without exceeding the scope of the invention.

Throughout this specification and the claims which follow, unless the context requires otherwise, the word "comprise", and variations such as "comprises" and "comprising", will be understood to imply the inclusion of a stated integer or step or group of integers or steps but not the exclusion of any other integer or step or group of integers or steps.

The reference in this specification to any prior publication (or information derived from it), or to any matter which is known, is not, and should not be taken as an acknowledgment or admission or any form of suggestion that that prior publication (or information derived from it) or known matter forms part of the common general knowledge in the field of endeavour to which this specification relates.

Claims

A combination comprising a standard 20-foot (6m) or 40-foot (12m) shipping container (12) and, stowed in the container, cargo items, each of which comprises a coil (100) having a longitudinally oriented axis and weighs more than 20% of a rated payload of the container, and cargo restraining means comprising spacer elements (104, 105, 106) which support the coils from below, closely conform with cylindrical shapes of the coils, and closely fit a gap between opposing sidewalls (107, 108) of the container, and spacer elements (110, 111; 109, 112) which separate the coils from each other and from end walls (113, 114) of the container, each of said spacer elements being a substantially rigid block of expanded plastics foam, the spacer elements being shaped and proportioned and positioned with the coils in designated positions in the container such that an assembly comprising the coils and spacer elements is closely confined between end walls (113, 114) of the container and contacts inner surfaces of the container (107, 108, 113, 114) to be restrained from movement relative to the container during movement of the container.
A combination according to claim 1, wherein the foam is polystyrene foam.
A combination according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the coils comprise coils of strip material.
A combination according to claim 3, wherein said material comprises steel.
A combination according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the spacer elements which support the coils from below each comprise an upwardly facing recess (6) in the form of a half-cylinder in which a respective cargo item of the assembly is received and supported.
A method for stowing cargo in a standard 20-foot (6m) or 40-foot (12m) shipping container (12), characterised by positioning, in designated positions in the container, cargo items, each of which comprises a coil (100) and weighs more than 20% of a rated payload of the container, and cargo restraining means comprising spacer elements (104, 105, 106) which support the coils from below, closely conform with cylindrical shapes of the coils, and closely fit a gap between opposing sidewalls (107, 108) of the container, and spacer elements (110, 111; 109, 112) which separate the coils from each other and from end walls (113, 114) of the container, each of said spacer elements being a substantially rigid block of expanded plastics foam, the spacer elements being shaped and proportioned and positioned with the coils in the container such that an assembly comprising the coils and spacer elements, in which each coil has a longitudinally oriented axis, is closely confined between end walls (113, 114) of the container and contacts inner surfaces of the container (107, 108, 113, 114) to be restrained from movement relative to the container during movement of the container.
A method according to claim 6, in which at least one of the spacer elements which bears the weight of a said cargo item is positioned within the container and the cargo item is subsequently lowered thereonto.