Container fit and best equipment
How many 20 ft, 40 ft or 40 ft high-cube containers a shipment needs by volume and weight, and the cheapest option.
Get this tool with its role plan
This is a premium tool. It comes with its role's plan: sign in, then add the role in Billing.
Comes with the logistics and dispatch plan: every tool for the role, from $10.20 a month at the launch price.
- Your own numbers, worked out as often as you like
- The full load plan you can print or save to My work
- 5 cited sources, linked, with the checks to make
- Every other tool for the same role, in the same plan
- A plain-words read of your result (a fuller AI read with the Bifrost AI add-on)
Included in these role plans
Example result · fictional numbers
What you get: load plan
Worked out by this tool from its default inputs. Its role plan lets you run your own numbers, print the sheet and save it.
1 × 40 ft for $4,310.00 door to door, $3.59 a unit
- 20 ft
- 2 needed (limited by volume), $5,600
- 40 ft
- 1 needed (limited by volume), $3,600
- 40 ft HC
- 1 needed (limited by volume), $3,800
- Best option
- 1 × 40 ft for $3,600
- Density
- 269 kg per CBM
Equipment comparison, door to door
- 20 ft
- 2 needed (by volume): $5,600.00 ocean + $1,420.00 inland = $7,020.00
- 40 ft
- 1 needed (by volume): $3,600.00 ocean + $710.00 inland = $4,310.00
- 40 ft HC
- 1 needed (by volume): $3,800.00 ocean + $710.00 inland = $4,510.00
- Cheapest on ocean rate alone (the tool's pick)
- 1 × 40 ft for $3,600.00
- Cheapest door to door, one size
- 1 × 40 ft for $4,310.00
- Best mix of 40 ft HC and 20 ft
- No mix to try: one box of each size does it
Also on the sheet
- Load plan: 1 × 40 ft · 6 lines, starting with “Volume per container”
- Cost sheet · 5 lines, starting with “Ocean freight”
The plain-words read of this example
This 52.0 CBM, 14,000 kg shipment is 269 kg per CBM; in one size it is limited by volume. Door to door, the cheapest is 1 × 40 ft at $4,310.00, or $3.59 a unit, the same as the ocean-only pick. Each 40 ft box carries about 14,000 kg, a VGM of about 17,750 kg with the tare. The shipper must declare each VGM before loading, and the inland leg must stay within 80,000 lb gross.
5 cited sources
- Verification of the gross mass of a packed container (SOLAS VI/2) (International Maritime Organization)
- 40' standard container specification (Hapag-Lloyd)
- 40' standard high cube container specification (Hapag-Lloyd)
- 23 CFR 658.17, Weight (eCFR (Federal Highway Administration))
- 20 ft standard container dimensions (Searates)
Plus 5 step-by-step checks, a print layout and a link that reopens it with your numbers.
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