The Emma
Maersk, part of a Danish shipping line, is shown in the
photos below. |
This is very graphic, and a great commentary. Don't know who circulated it on Facebook, but it really does say it all.
What a ship....no wonder 'Made in China ' is displacing North American made goods big time. This monster transports goods across the Pacific in just 5 days!! Another two will soon be commissioned. These ships were commissioned by Wal-Mart to get their imported goods from China .... They hold an incredible 15,000 containers and have a 207 foot deck beam!! The full crew is just 13 people on a ship longer than a US Aircraft Carrier which has a crew of 5,000. With its 207' beam it is too big to fit through the Panama or Suez Canals .
It is strictly transpacific. Cruise speed: 31 knots. The goods arrive four days before the typical container ship (18-20 knots) on a China-to-California run. 91% of Wal-Mart products are made in China. So this behemoth is hugely competitive even when carrying perishable goods. The ship was built in five sections. The sections are floated together and then welded. The command bridge is higher than a 10-story building and has 11 cargo crane rigs that can operate simultaneously unloading the entire ship in less than two hours.
Additional info:
Country of origin - Denmark
Length - 1,302 ft
Width - 207 ft
Net cargo - 123,200 tons
Engine - 14 cylinders in-line diesel engine (110,000 BHP)
Cruise Speed - 31 knots
Cargo capacity - 15,000 TEU (1 TEU = 20 cubic feet)
Crew - 13 people!
First trip - Sept. 08, 2006
Construction cost - US $145,000,000+
Silicone painting applied to the ship bottom reduces water resistance and saves 317,000 gallons of diesel per year.
Editorial Comment!
A recent documentary in late March, 2010 on the History Channel noted that all of these containers are shipped back to China, EMPTY!
Yep, that's right.
We send nothing back on these ships.
What does that tell you about the current financial state of the west in crisis?
So folks, just keep on buying those imported goods (mostly gadgets) until you run out of money. Then you may wonder what the cause of unemployment in the U..S, UK, Canada and even in Australia????
A recent documentary in late March, 2010 on the History Channel noted that all of these containers are shipped back to China, EMPTY!
Yep, that's right.
We send nothing back on these ships.
What does that tell you about the current financial state of the west in crisis?
So folks, just keep on buying those imported goods (mostly gadgets) until you run out of money. Then you may wonder what the cause of unemployment in the U..S, UK, Canada and even in Australia????