shippingandgener

Reefer plug points are the power connections that keep a refrigerated container running when it is not on a ship or behind a truck fitted with a generator. For Gauteng importers and exporters, they are what make it possible to hold a reefer at an inland depot over a weekend, a public holiday or a

Container unpacking is the point where an import shipment stops being a sealed box and becomes pallets, cartons, drums or machinery that someone has to handle, count and deliver. For many Gauteng importers, that step happens at a container depot near City Deep rather than at their own premises. The reasons are practical. Not every

A tremcard is the transport emergency card that must travel in the cab of every vehicle carrying dangerous goods by road in South Africa. It is a short, product-specific instruction sheet that tells the driver, and anyone who arrives at an incident, what the hazards are and what to do in an emergency. The card

Abnormal load transport in South Africa involves far more than a big truck. Transformers, mining equipment, industrial plant, boats and structural steel often exceed the legal size or mass limits for ordinary road vehicles, and moving them legally requires a permit, a planned route, the right equipment and, in many cases, escort vehicles. Mistakes in

Dangerous goods transport in South Africa is governed by detailed rules that apply to everyone in the chain: the company that sends the goods, the transporter that carries them, the driver behind the wheel and the business that receives them. A missing document, a wrong placard or an untrained driver can stop a load at

SOLAS VGM in South Africa is not optional paperwork. Every packed export container needs a verified gross mass before it can be loaded onto a ship, and a container without one can be refused at the terminal gate or left behind on the quay. The rule has applied worldwide since 2016, but South African exporters

An empty container return in Johannesburg looks like the simplest step in an import. The cargo is unpacked, the box is empty and it only needs to go back to the shipping line. In practice, returning an empty container to the wrong depot, returning it late or returning it dirty or damaged can cost more

A City Deep container depot sits at one of the busiest junctions in South Africa’s supply chain. Most import containers bound for Gauteng leave the Port of Durban by rail or road and end up in or around City Deep, the inland container terminal in Johannesburg, before they reach a warehouse, a factory floor or