Watch the full video on our YouTube channel.
Digital visibility that supports control.
In container logistics, too much time is lost chasing updates, checking availability, and managing manual follow-up. OVL’s digital Customer Portal centralises container availability, one-way bookings, leased container overviews, and expanding purchasing functionality in one place.
It reduces unnecessary back-and-forth, improves visibility, and helps teams plan with greater confidence before friction turns into margin loss.
You stay informed. You stay in control.
Buy or lease containers wordwide.
All container companies say they will go the distance for you. We go to places most container companies haven’t even heard of. With locations across Europe, Asia, and North America, our depot network supports one-way container operations across rail, road, and sea. Use the interactive map below to explore availability and find containers where you need them.
Pick up your container where you need it. Return it where it makes operational sense.
We’ll take care of the rest.
The future of global trade depends on how we use containers, on the move and on the ground.
Too often, containers travel empty. Operations run on endless emails, spreadsheets, slow confirmations, and rules that create friction when plans change. That friction isn’t just inconvenient. It leaks margin, creates unplanned disruptions, and puts reputations at risk.
We believe there’s a better way.
A few things worth knowing
Intermodal containers
Containers keep industry moving. The modern shipping container offers one of the quickest and most cost-effective ways to transport merchandise internationally. Intermodal freight containers offer safe, dry storage and the ability to transport a wide variety of goods by ship, rail and truck without having to unload and reload the cargo. If you’re looking for a fast, secure, and cost-efficient means of international transport, we’ve got a container that will suit your unique needs.
Container inspections
We conduct thorough CSC (Convention for Safe Containers) container surveys in the port or wherever your container is located. Performed by an IICL (Institute of International Container Lessors) Certified Inspector, a valid CSC inspection guarantees that your container is approved for freight transport. CSC certified units are fitted with a CSC Safety-Approval Plate on the date they are manufactured. The CSC-Plate contains vital information about the container, including its registration number, age, dimensions, weights, strength and maximum stacking capability. Additional inspections must occur regularly if the container is used to transport cargo.
ISO Standards
Established and accepted internationally, ISO (International Organisation for Standardisation) container standards save time and valuable resources by ensuring the consistent, safe handling and transport of containers throughout the world. The ISO standard also specifies container terminology used by the industry, as well as load capacity, tolerances, letters and numbers, overlapping stacking, and methods of strength and strength tests related to a container’s design.
The most common ISO standard lengths for containers are: 20’ ft (6.1 m), 30’ ft (9 m), 40’ ft (12.2 m), 45’ ft (13.7 m), 48’ ft (14.6 m) and 53‘ ft (16.2 m). The ISO standard width is 8’ ft (2.4 m). Height is not specified in the ISO standard but the most common heights are 8’ 6” (2.6 m) and 9’ 6” (2.9 m).
Import clearances
Containers are a means of transport free of import duties under the temporary importation procedure when used for the commercial transport of goods. If a container temporarily lands as a means of transport but remains permanently in the community, for example because of sales, it must be released for free circulation. Customs must be admitted to the customs declaration of import immediately. In the event that a container is sold, it is required in the terms of the sale that the seller and the buyer agree on which party is responsible for the customs clearance. When containers are leased for purposes other than the means of transport, the container of the lessor is obligatory. Containers are duty-free on the basis of the customs tariff, but they are subject to the VAT (Value-Added Tax)
Source: Southerns Customs Circuit Customer Instructions 1/08 O.V. Lahtinen will declare containers which permanently stay in Finland.
