A look back at the July 1984 issue of HCB

摘要

The history of the Bulletin, which was first published in 1980, has followed development of the tank container concept, which appeared around ten years earlier. By 1984 we could, for instance, report that tank container designers were approaching an "ideal" - something that might surprise anyone in the business looking at some, of diose designs. Tank container designers have little leeway: tanks should maximise payload, minimise tare weight and ensure complete safety, all within the limits of the ISO frame. The July 1984 issue made the point that, taking advantage of developments in materials science and equipment technology, contemporary tanks "have evolved to die extent that they have come under the umbrella of the law of diminishing returns". As the front page said: "Future improvements are likely to be much more marginal and at much greater cost."