Flooring

Guidelines for in-depot testing of replacement container floorboards

The COA has published Guidelines for in-depot testing of replacement floorboards for containers. This technical document describes a test procedure designed to be undertaken within a depot to assess that replacement floor boards conform to the required specification for use in the repair of ISO Dry Freight General Purpose containers.

To view the Guidelines, click on this link: IN-DEPOT FLOORBOARDS

COA publishes “Report on Alternative Materials for Container Floors”

The COA’s “Report on Alternative Materials for Container Floorboards” has been published and is available for COA Members to download from the COA website.

The Report continues: “Whilst the market is still open to the use of alternative materials to tropical hardwood plywood for container floors, it is clear that bamboo, in all its forms, is currently the alternative material of choice. Bamboo apparently offers the best compromise of strength, price and quality at the moment and given the price pressures that remain on the container industry, we expect that the market share of bamboo floors will continue to increase.”

As for other alternatives, such as steel, steel/plastic and the composite OSB hybrid, the Report forecasts that there will be still some production – but volumes will be limited until it becomes clear whether sufficient buyers will order enough of these materials to justify volume production. New alternative materials may still emerge but the current market with low production volumes and sustained pressure on pricing does not offer an attractive environment for newcomers with new ideas.