The COVID-19 lockdown in Shanghai—lasting over 4 years—dealt an unprecedented blow to the city’s enterprises, especially export-focused businesses. As China’s largest and a world-renowned international trade port, Shanghai Port faced severe disruptions: terminal congestion, restricted personnel movement, and halted export channels for shipping containers and container parts became the norm. Amid this extreme challenge, CIMC Equilink stood with our customers, overcoming countless obstacles to fulfill orders and deliver professional one-stop logistics solutions. Below are the stories of how we navigated the lockdown to safeguard our customers’ supply chains.

Overcoming All Odds: Delivering 6 Full Containers of Goods to Ningbo Port

A new customer placed an urgent order for 6 brand-new shipping containers, fully loaded with core container parts including shipping container floors, Container Locking Devices, container corner castings, and Twist Locks—with a clear requirement for shipment from Ningbo Port. The odds were stacked against us from the start: the customer’s appointed shipping company only operated one vessel monthly from Ningbo, and terminal lockdowns or congestion loomed at any time due to the pandemic.

We booked shipping space in mid-May, but a critical roadblock emerged: our Shanghai-based factories and all staff were still under strict lockdown, with no clear end in sight. Transporting the Shanghai-manufactured containers and parts to Ningbo was completely prohibited, and the shipment date was fast approaching. We were stuck in a desperate dilemma, but we refused to let our customer down.

Through relentless coordination with our factory teams, we secured approval to ship the 6 new containers by sea from Shanghai to Ningbo—the only feasible transport method at the time. For the container parts, we split the solution to bypass lockdown restrictions:

• Container floors: Our non-Shanghai factories delivered these directly to Ningbo by road, avoiding the lockdown entirely.

• Other core parts: With Shanghai warehouses inaccessible, we arranged for our off-site factories to re-produce and deliver the remaining parts (corner castings, locking devices, etc.) directly to Ningbo Port.

After weeks of tireless effort, all 6 containers and every piece of container part were successfully loaded onto the vessel at Ningbo Port. The process was arduous, but we delivered on our promise—ensuring the customer’s supply chain remained unbroken.

Adapting & Innovating: Redirecting FCL Container Floor Shipments to Qingdao Port

FCL shipping container floors are a flagship product for CIMC Equilink, and we often advise customers to fill the remaining space in 20’GP containers (which hold 268 pieces of 28x1160x2400 container floor) with complementary parts like container corner castings or Container Locking Devices—slashing unit transportation costs significantly. One long-term customer had repeatedly ordered FCL container floors with matching corner castings, with shipments traditionally arranged from Shanghai Port.

When Shanghai’s lockdown hit, all inbound and outbound transport to the city was halted: we could not move cargo into Shanghai, and exports from Shanghai Port were impossible. Rather than delay the order, our team pivoted quickly—identifying Qingdao Port as a reliable alternative. A major international trade port with unimpeded logistics, Qingdao became the new hub for this customer’s shipment.

We coordinated for our container floors and corner castings to be delivered directly to Qingdao Port by our off-site manufacturing and logistics partners. The result exceeded all expectations: the delivery timeline was not just unaffected by the Shanghai lockdown—it was even faster than the original Shanghai Port schedule. This successful pivot unlocked a new, more efficient logistics route for our FCL container floor shipments.

This experience also spurred us to optimize our global shipping network: moving forward, we can arrange direct shipments of FCL container floors from Qingdao, Zhangjiagang, Xiamen and other non-Shanghai ports—offering customers lower transportation costs and shorter delivery times, a permanent upgrade to our one-stop service.

Back to Normal: Committed to Elevating Our One-Stop Supply & Service Platform

Thanks to joint efforts and pandemic prevention measures, Shanghai has gradually returned to normal, and our Shanghai factories and warehouses have resumed full operations. The lockdown was an unprecedented test, but it reinforced CIMC Equilink’s core commitments: unwavering product quality, flexible logistics solutions, and customer-centric one-stop service.

We do not just supply shipping containers for sale and premium container parts (container corner casting, container floor, Container Locking Device, Twist Lock, etc.)—we stand with our customers through every challenge, adapting our logistics and production networks to deliver on our promises, no matter the circumstances.

Our One-Stop Container Solutions

CIMC Equilink remains your trusted global partner for all container needs, offering:

• A full range of high-quality container parts: container corner casting, container floor, Container Locking Device, Twist Lock, and more.

• New and used shipping containers for sale, customizable to your cargo requirements.

• Professional one-stop services: flexible shipping route planning, mixed cargo loading optimization, and end-to-end supply chain support.

In the future, we will continue to build and upgrade our one-stop supply and service platform, combining stable, high-quality products with innovative, customer-focused logistics solutions—ensuring your container and parts needs are met efficiently, reliably, and cost-effectively, anywhere in the world.

For inquiries about container parts, shipping containers for sale, or our one-stop logistics services, contact us at:

Email: info.equilink@cimc.com

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