Updated
Unloading is the moment the container becomes yours, and it is where responsibility usually transfers. Almost everything that goes wrong at this point was decided days earlier, when nobody prepared the standing position.
This is what to have ready.
Prepare the standing position
A container should sit on four level bearing points under the corner castings — concrete pads, railway sleepers or steel plates. Not a continuous bed, and not directly on soft ground.
Two reasons. Air circulating underneath lets the structure dry, which is the single biggest factor in how long the container lasts. And a unit set down out of level racks, at which point the doors stop closing properly. Get the four corners level to within a few millimetres.
Decide the orientation before the vehicle arrives
Which end do the doors face? It sounds trivial and it is the most common thing forgotten. Doors need about 2.5 m of clear swing, they should generally face away from the prevailing weather, and turning a container after placement is a second lift with a second cost.
For an open side container this is more critical still, since the working side must face the working area.
On the day
- Someone on site with authority to direct placement and sign for the unit
- The route clear — parked vehicles moved, gates unlocked, low branches cut back
- The standing position clear and the bearing points already positioned
- Ground conditions honestly assessed; if in doubt, plate the route
- Anyone not involved kept out of the working area while the unit is placed
Unloading cargo from a container
A different question, and worth separating. Cargo is unloaded through the doors with a forklift or pallet truck, which needs the container at a working height or a ramp, and needs a floor that will take the equipment.
A 28 mm plywood container floor is rated for a loaded forklift, but the ground the forklift approaches over usually is not. Plan the approach, not just the container.