• bulk-dry or liquid
• break bulk – known as general cargo (cases, pallets, drums)
• containers.
To carry these different types of cargo, different types of ships are used. Some vessels are specialized for the carriage of only one type of cargo, e.g. Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) carriers, while others are more versatile and can accommodate a variety of cargoes − e.g. general cargo.
General cargo ships are not specialized for transport of only dry bulks, only containers or only heavy-lift cargoes, but they have flexibility to carry any of these cargo types. General cargo ships are the world’s most numerous ship types, excepting fishing vessels.
The vessel is normally equipped with cranes and/or derricks. This type of vessel is making room for more specialized vessels. Now the majority of cargo is shipped in containers. Thus, there in no need for ships to have their own cargo handling gear and they rely entirely on shore facilities. Much of the general cargo carried now is of a type that cannot be readily packed into containers.
Container Ships are large, long ships that are specifically designed for carrying their cargo in containers. The containers are intermodal, meaning they can be transported by different modes of transportation, like via ship or truck.
Container liner services are specifically focused on the transport of a limited range of standardized unit loads: the twenty-foot dry-cargo container or TEU and the forty-foot dry-cargo container or FEU. Occasionally, slightly diverging container units are also loaded on container vessels, such as high cube containers, tank and open-top containers and 45- foot containers.
Cargo ship
