Four Agricultural Implements - Crane-Loaded Open Top Shipment

The shipment

Meridian sourced and purchased the four machines in consultation with the participating farms. The mixed shipment combined several heavy tillage frames with a 25-ft grain drill whose seed boxes were the most vulnerable parts of the load. A standard closed container was considered, but the heavy assemblies would have had to be stacked close to the roof. That arrangement would have made destination unloading difficult and increased the risk of damage. Meridian therefore selected an Open Top container and used a crane to control the placement of the equipment from above. The heavy frames were positioned below, while the grain drill and its more fragile seed boxes were kept at the top of the load. This sequence also allowed the receiving team in Primorsky Krai to lift the drill out by crane before unloading the heavier components. The equipment weighed approximately 20 metric tons. The container traveled by rail from Chicago across the Canadian border to Prince Rupert, British Columbia, then by ocean service through Busan to Vladivostok. Approximate transit time was 55 days. Meridian's responsibility ended in Vladivostok. The farms completed unloading, reassembly and commissioning with their own teams. No delay, damage, missing component or route change was reported.