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ICEFAT
Newsletter #4 — 2004 | |
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ART
TO HAWAII BY SEA CONTAINER | | | To
the majority of Museum staff airfreight is the method of choice for moving an
exhibition and the idea of using sea freight is rarely considered. One museum
successfully using sea containers to ship art works is the Contemporary Museum,
Honolulu Hawaii | |
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Air flights into Hawaii cannot
support large shipments, so the only way to get large artworks or exhibitions
in and out of Hawaii is by sea freight.
Stephie L' Heureux, is the Head
Registrar of The Contemporary Museum and is quite an expert in this field, having
used seafreight four or more times each year since 1990 without any damage problems.
Stephie does have difficulties persuading some museums to allow their
exhibitions to be shipped by sea, but most eventually agree once she shows them
how many times she has successfully used the method.
—The trick to
safe sea container shipping is to hire an art moving company that is good at loading
the containers and bracing the crates inside to prevent movement Stephie L' Heureux
says. The artmoving company should check the container to make certain it has
tight door seals and no roof leaks.
| |  | Reefer
containers are recommended for their airtight seal and ability to maintain a constant
temperature |
INSIDE
POSITION
According to Stephie L' Heureux there are two kinds of
refrigerated containers available. One is strictly temperature control, which
they ask to be set at 68 degrees Fahrenheit. The other container maintains humidity,
but the museum has found that the humidity does not drop below 65 percent, which
is too high, so they don't use it.
Because reefers are plugged into the
ship's power while in transit, the reefers must stay above deck. Ships do not
have power sources below decks, says Stephie L' Heureux. To better protect the
containers from possible waves, I asks that the containers get placed in an inside
position on deck. The museum has clearance from their insurance company to ship
art by sea. | | | One
problem with sea shipping is that there can be delays caused by the time it takes
to load and off load vessels, or when a ship must change routes to avoid storms
so it is important to allow for possible delays. In shipping to Hawaii, the ships
depart California on Saturday, arrive in Honolulu on Wednesday and the container
is delivered on Friday - a 6 day transit. | |
| | SHORT
FACTS:
When to use sea freight?
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Transport by land or air is not possible - airlines do not service the destination
or the aircraft do not support the size of the crates.
- Budget reasons - transport
by seafreight, especially over long distances, often costs much less than airfreight
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- The objects to be shipped are not suitable for airfreight, such as weight
and dimension exceed air space limit.
- To save storage on land in between
the origin and destination by sea voyage.
What are the most common types
of container that can be used?
Reefer containers are recommended for their
airtight seal and ability to maintain a constant temperature - but they cannot
be stowed below deck. In accordance with Marine insurance requirements these containers
are monitored 4 times each day during transit. Open top container and flat racks
can be used for extra large objects or heavy items which require crane to the
lifting purpose. By Thomas Yuen, Mike Andrel, Bryan Cooke
and Kim Powell | |
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