International Convention for Safe Containers (CSC)

In force since September 6, 1977, the convention requires each container used in international transport to be tested and approved by a contracting state or an organization it authorizes, and to carry a CSC safety approval plate. Owners must have containers examined under a periodic scheme, first within five years of manufacture and then at least every 30 months, or under an approved continuous examination programme. Authorities can stop containers with defects that make them unsafe.

The CSC is why containers arriving at a fulfillment center or transload facility are certified for stacking and lifting. A damaged or uncertified container can be taken out of service, delaying imports. For example, if a container's CSC plate is missing or its corner posts are damaged, a terminal may refuse to load it, and the importer waiting for that inventory faces delays and possibly extra drayage. Warehouse teams receiving containers should record structural damage at gate-in to avoid being charged for it later.

• Twenty-Foot Equivalent UnitTEUContainer capacity unit of one 20-foot box
• TransloadingMoving goods from a container to a trailer
• DrayageTrucking containers from port to warehouse

• ISO Shipping Container Standard1968 · ISO 668 fixes container sizes worldwide
• Ideal X First Container Voyage1956 · The first commercially successful container ship sails

• First SOLAS Convention1914, never in force · First ship safety treaty, adopted after the Titanic
• Merchant Shipping Act 18761876 · UK law that made the Plimsoll load line compulsory

1. 1972 Convention for Safe Containers (CSC 1972), IMO imo.org