If you have been looking into buying a unit, you may have noticed that they have sometimes been referred to as ‘intermodal’. This term is attributed to the fact that storage units were originally designed and built to be transferred between different modes of transport.
What Are Intermodals Used For?
Storage boxes were traditionally designed to facilitate the transportation of cargo around the world. They were made so that goods could be loaded into them in one country, then transported across the world by ship, train, or road, being able to be transferred between the different modes of transport and then unpacked when they got to their destination at the other end.
There are several benefits to this, such as better security for the cargo, less loading and unloading required, a faster journey, and it is more cost-effective.
These design features mean that steel units are:
- Robust – Able to withstand rough sea and extreme weather conditions whilst at sea
- Easily moved – Although heavy, shipping units are designed to be moved easily
- Space effective – They are of a uniform shape, enabling them to be stacked on top of each other and economic with space
- Secure and easy to lock
Due to these attributes, we are also seeing a rise in the number of people who are opting for conversions for other reasons – mainly as a storage facility or temporary or semi-permanent buildings.
Intermodal Containers for Storage
We generally see intermodal units being used for storage, either on private premises – in a domestic or business setting – or in a storage facility. They can be put wherever there is space and a solid foundation or found in a facility with multiple units.
You can normally hire one at a facility or buy or rent to have for yourself. Of course, the amount of storage space that you have depends on the size of it, but a 20ft box can hold the contents of a typical 3-bedroom house.
Intermodal Conversions
Due to the fact that they have been designed to be easily, neatly and securely stored, intermodal modules make great building blocks for a temporary or semi-permanent building. They can be stacked on top of each other or joined side by side, and then converted into a space that is useful, whatever your needs.
Shipping containers come in a range of different sizes – from 10ft to 40ft. Remember, however, that you can also join a number of them together to create a much larger space.
We are now seeing a range of different buildings being made from these materials, from home offices in the garden to temporary hospital wards (such as the emergency coronavirus hospital in Wuhan) to modular classrooms, to fire-resistant plant rooms.
There are several ways they can be adapted to make them suitable for human inhabitation, including:
- Installing lighting and electricity
- Fitting personnel doors
- Adding windows or hatches
- Installing internal racking
- Adding an insulating lining to keep it warm in the winter and cool in the summer
One of the best things about using intermodal units for either storage or as a construction material is that it is reducing waste. Whether you use a ‘new’ shipping container (one that has had just one journey) or a second-hand one, you are upcycling and preventing something else from being thrown away.
