The Box
by Marc Levinson · first published 2006
84% recommend16% neutral
Why HN recommends it
History of containerization, from Malcom McLean's push through standards fights, union resistance and port upheavals. Shows how cheap shipping reshaped manufacturing; for logistics and economics readers.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
In April 1956, a refitted oil tanker carried fifty-eight shipping containers from Newark to Houston. From that modest beginning, container shipping developed into a huge industry that made the boom in global trade possible. The Box tells the dramatic story of the container's creation, the decade of struggle before it was widely adopted, and the sweeping economic consequences of the sharp fall in transportation costs that containerization brought about. Drawing on previously neglected sources, economist Marc Levinson shows how the container transformed economic geography, devastating traditiona
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Some years ago I read The Box by Marc Levinson, a history of containerized shipping. Highly recommend it. If you live in SF and have wondered about the numerous barely used piers, this book explains their history as well - and why…
on “Maersk installed 100-foot-tall rotating sails on one of its tankers” ↗I recently read The Box[1] by Marc Levinson. It is an excellent read which explains how the container came to be - it's really fascinating to think that this ubiquitous thing was only invented about 50 years ago. The book is…
on “The shipping network that keeps the world running” ↗Here's two good relevant books: The Box: How the Shipping Container Made the World Smaller and the World Economy Bigger: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0691136408/ A general history, and you'll find the section on coupling standardization…
on “The amazing shipping container: How it changed the world” ↗I highly recommend the book "The Box" which goes deep into the history of the shipping container. http://www.amazon.com/The-Box-Shipping-Container-Smaller/dp/... In a nutshell, it was messy. It's not easy in the physical/infrastructure…
on “Containers have been more important for globalisation than freer trade” ↗A fascinating book about the history of container shipping is http://www.amazon.com/Box-Shipping-Container-Smaller-Economy...
on “Aboard a Cargo Colossus: Maersk’s New Container Ships” ↗Stories of Your Life and Others is a collection of short stories by Ted Chiang. The stories explore wildly different topics, but every one of them is amazing. Someone on HN had recommended The Box by Marc Levinson. It's a history of the shipping container. That sounds dreadfully prosaic, but the book is well written and the shipping container's influence on our modern global economy cannot be…
on “Ask HN: Which book are you reading these days?” ↗I guess this is the next upheaval in shipping. I think the last upheaval was with the introduction of the shipping container. A fascinating read on the subject: http://www.amazon.com/The-Box-Shipping-Container-Smaller/dp/...
on “Freight Startups Attract Silicon Valley’s Attention” ↗I know that the history of shipping containers might not sound like the most exciting thing in the world, but The Box is a great book http://www.amazon.com/The-Box-Shipping-Container-Smaller/dp/... Shipping rules used to be crazy
on “Freight Startups Attract Silicon Valley’s Attention” ↗…really got adopted throughout the supply chain is the container. If anyone is interested in learning the history of this, a good book (2e: ISBN 978-0-691-17081-7): * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Box_(Levinson_book) It really took off during/after the Vietnam War as the Pentagon saw its benefits in efficiency and not having to use Old School longshoreman and switching to cranes.
on “Cargill open-sources Splinter, its ‘blockchain-like’ supply chain software” ↗The book is a fascinating read: http://www.amazon.com/Box-Shipping-Container-Smaller-Economy... It chronicles competing standards, proprietary efforts, attempts at sea-rail-road integration, with some lively characters thrown in. It captures the entrepreneurial…
on “Containers have been more important for globalisation than freer trade” ↗There's a great book about the shipping container: http://www.amazon.com/The-Box-Shipping-Container-Smaller/dp/... It is hard to imagine a company like Amazon being successful without the humble shipping container...before its time, a ship could spend as much time loading and unloading…
on “The secret world of cargo ships” ↗I'll bet there were a lot of people who were upset when shipping containers were standardised too. There's a GREAT book on the subject: "The Box: How the Shipping Container Made the World Smaller and the World Economy Bigger" http://www.amazon.com/Box-Shipping-Container-Smaller-Economy...
on “Why Docker and CoreOS’ split was predictable” ↗Read "The Box" for more history and details - http://www.amazon.com/The-Box-Shipping-Container-Smaller/dp/... I think this story has been on HN before, but I can't find it.
on “How Shipping Containers Changed the World” ↗…describes the design process behind a technique we've always taken for granted. It's a historical account mainly, starting from the idea all the way to modern day shipping. http://www.amazon.com/The-Box-Shipping-Container-Smaller/dp/... The second, which I read through the first few chapters of, describes the origins of the steam engine, but it was a bit bland for my tastes. http://www.amazon.com/The-Most-Powerful-Idea-World/dp/022672...…
on “The Best Books I Read in 2015” ↗"The Box: How the Shipping Container Made the World Smaller and the World Economy Bigger" by Marc Levinson This book is an amazing breakdown of the shipping container and the impact that seemingly insignificant…
on “Ask HN: Which non-technology book has influenced you the most and why?” ↗