The metal box that changed the world
Innovation is not always a 3nm microchip, a large language model, or an electric vehicle. Sometimes, it is just a metal box 8 feet by 8 feet by 20 feet long. And it can change the world just the same.
Admittedly, Malcolm McLean did not invent the box container. But he brought a key insight into the mix. That the standardization of the dimensions of the container can enable a transformation in the way transport logistics worked. Even he could not have predicted how effective it would turn out to be.
The adoption of the box container and the development of the infrastructure around this simple box transformed global trade, labour relations, and consumer choice in ways that only make sense in retrospect. As the box container lowered the cost of shipping, it became feasible to source goods from far off geographies. High cost local producers could no longer compete with the low cost producers in the far east. In turn, this led to margin pressures which translated into wage cuts or caps. Capital was mobile while labour wasn't. And of course, consumer choice swelled.
This was hardly a smooth journey though. And there wasn't some aha moment after which shipping just changed. There was incredible resistance from all quarters, from port labour to regulators to shipping companies that had capital invested in the old way of doing things.
But the impact did come. To the point where "cost of transporting goods [became] little more than a footnote in a company's cost analysis." The Covid disruption was a painful reminder of what the global economy could look like if costs of shipping were not as low as they are now.
In any case, back to the point that a simple metal box can be an incredible innovation. Sometimes all it takes is imagination or time to see it that way.
P.S.: Image credit Wikideas1