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The Euro footprint has ruled packaging and logistics for decades, but now we see a new contender on the market: the ISO stackable containers are now in demand. There is nothing surprising if we take a look at the way the world of commerce, manufacturing and distribution has evolved.
New Products for New Market Demands
Starting with the post-war era and well into the ‘90s, the global trade would follow a smooth path of traditional products, traditional supply chains and traditional marketing and merchandizing strategies. Competition was between the “big sharks” and the small companies really did not matter.
Then the internet arrived, and the small companies found that they had a voice and could address the end customer directly. While big sharks continued to push the same products towards consumers, small companies proved to be more adaptable and amenable to the customers’ demands.
And they found out that people were tired of standard products. They were no longer prepared to adapt their needs to the offer on the market. They wanted the market to adapt to their needs. A rapid succession of events – online orders, online payments, global crisis – and even the large companies learned the bitter lesson of adapt and survive.
Where do ISO stackable containers fit in this story?
A New Vision in Production and Logistic Costs
Back in the day, if your products did not fit standard shaped containers properly, to fill them up, you just left some empty space and grabbed a new container. This was when companies did not have to worry about shipping and logistic costs, because their turnover could cover these expenses and leave enough margins for shareholders to enjoy their dividends.
Right now, every cent matters. When your products are shaped in a way that does not fit a 600 x 400 mm container, you do not partly fill two containers, you opt for an ISO sized 600 x 500 mm container. Every cubic meter you can save when loading up a trailer with packaged product represents money saved from your shipping budget, money which can go to research and development or customer acquisition strategies.
Will ISO Stackable Containers Kill Off EURO Sizes?
There is no competition between EURO and ISO stackable containers. They are both from the same family of versatile packaging solutions, which can be used in all the industries. They are sturdy enough to be useful in warehouses and distribution hubs, compact enough to save space in production facility and retail businesses and they are available in a wide range of versions for the bottom, walls and handles.
There is, and there will always be a market for EURO containers. But ISO stackable containers are badly needed in a world where special sized products become the norm.
The 1000 x 1000 mm, 1200 x 1000 mm, 1200 x 1200 mm footprints are extremely useful for bulky products, which would not fit properly in an EURO sized container. Also, let us think about products with a special shape? The 600 x 400 mm container is too short, wile the 800 x 600 mm one is too long. But a special sized 700 x 500 mm fits them just perfectly.
After all, the world evolves towards diversity in everything we do. ISO stackable containers represent the way packaging and logistics embrace this new philosophy.
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