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BIC has launched a completely redesigned upload experience for BoxTech, its free global container database – the first of several platform enhancements planned across 2026.
The new web interface lets container owners build a bespoke template with just the fields they want to upload and share with the supply chain, rather than a single large template containing every possible field. Alongside the required container markings, they can pick and choose individual fields from across the available data sets – such as CSC safety plate, tank container, smart container, and dimensions – then download a CSV matched precisely to those selections.
As a file is loaded, the platform validates it instantly in the browser, marking each row as valid or invalid and explaining any error before submission. A flawless file is no longer required to proceed: valid rows can be uploaded immediately, while rows containing errors can be downloaded, corrected, and resubmitted separately. A new Quick Generate option creates an entire serial range from a single set of shared specifications, easing the entry of newly built container batches.
Launched by BIC in 2016, BoxTech is the only centralized container equipment database of its kind in the world. Free, neutral, and non-profit, it holds the technical details of more than 15.3 million containers and is drawn on by more than 6,000 registered users. Once an owner publishes a fleet, trading partners – terminals, depots, shippers, forwarders, and carriers – can retrieve specifications on demand, including tare weights for SOLAS VGM compliance, maximum gross mass, ISO size types, CSC plate validity, smart container attributes, and status flags for units that have been sold, scrapped, lost, or stolen.
“This is the first of several upgrades we’re bringing to BoxTech in 2026 — the 10th anniversary year of the Global Container Database. BIC has continually evaluated BoxTech functionality and customer feedback with an aim to improve users’ experience of the service. The developments over 2026 are a reflection of this work and show BIC’s commitment to continuous improvement.”
— Douglas Owen, Secretary-General at BIC
Try the new upload screens
Already uploading to BoxTech, or thinking of getting started? We encourage every BIC Code holder to log in and explore the redesigned screens – registering is free and takes only a few minutes at app.bic-boxtech.org.
→ Read the full guide to the new upload screens
→ Log-in to try the new upload interface
We encourage fleet uploads via API or SFTP: they keep your data current with far less manual effort – data that trading partners retrieve through over 1.8 million BoxTech API calls every month.
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Come and visit us on stand G36. You can register here.
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Come and visit us on stand 124. You can register here.
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November 12th, 2025
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
The Bureau International des Containers is pleased to announce that Mr. Patrick Hicks is this year’s recipient of the BIC Award.
The award was presented at the Container Owners Association (COA) members meeting, the day before the 2025 edition of Intermodal Europe. The award was presented by BIC Secretary General Douglas Owen, assisted by Board Member and former Chairman of the BIC, and Director and Secretary General of C.I.S.Co, Giordano Guerrini, along with BIC Board Member Philippe Berard.
Patrick Hicks has served as General Secretary of the Container Owners Association since 2005 – the year that organisation was established.
Patrick started his career at the P&O Steamship Company – and subsequently worked for Freightliner, the UK intermodal operator. He then moved into the container and transport publishing and events sector, where he launched a number of industry journals covering container shipping, cargo handling and chemical distribution.
In addition to the COA, Patrick also manages two other container industry associations – the International Tank Container Organisation (ITCO) and the Cargo Incident Notification System (CINS). Through these roles, he has overseen a wide range of initiatives aimed at improving industry standards, promoting safety, encouraging technical innovation and promoting international collaboration among members.
“I’m truly honoured to receive the BIC 2025 Award,” said Mr. Hicks upon accepting the award. “My sincere thanks to the Bureau International des Containers, whose standards and technical innovation work sets the benchmark for our industry. This recognition reflects the commitment and encouragement of our members – and the support and dedication of my colleagues.”
The BIC Award is presented each year to an individual or organization for significant contribution to one of the “4 S’s” of BIC’s mission: standardization, safety, security, and sustainability in the container shipping industry. In selecting Mr. Hicks, the BIC’s Board cited Mr. Hicks’ work in support in all four areas.
Said BIC Secretary General Douglas Owen when presenting the award : “In order for progress to occur in any of these areas, people need to be able to come together. They need to stay informed, to find the right experts, link up with the right organizations. They need the possibility of collaborating in working groups, and they need professional associations to help keep the ball moving forward. Through his decades of work at the COA, ITCO and other organizations, Patrick has played an important role in advancing critical topics related to safety, security, standardization and sustainability.”
ENDS – 406 words
About BIC
The Bureau International des Containers (BIC) was founded under the auspices of the International Chamber of Commerce in 1933 as a neutral, non-profit, international organization. The BIC seeks to promote efficiency, safety, security, standardization, and sustainability in the container supply chain and today has over 3000 container owning and operating members in 128 countries. Publisher of the BIC Code Register since 1970, the BIC also operates the BoxTech Global Container Database (bic-boxtech.org), providing API-accessible equipment details to help improve efficiency and safety in the supply chain, as well as the BIC Facility Code Database, providing harmonized codes to identify over 17,000 container facilities in 190 countries. The BIC also operates the Global ACEP Database under the guidance of the IMO. The BIC holds official observer status as an NGO at the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the World Customs Organization (WCO), and the United Nations Centre for Trade Facilitation and Electronic Business (UN/CEFACT) and works closely with the ISO and other standards organizations. Learn more at www.bic-code.org.
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The industry bodies of the Cargo Integrity Group expand on their concerns relating to cargoes that can catch fire and cause significant damage and casualties under certain conditions. Circumstances created by an alignment of mistakes, oversights, or failed controls can turn a minor incident into a major event.
16th June 2025
Following its identification of ‘cargoes of concern’*, the Cargo Integrity Group (the Group) now focuses on the issues that may commonly compromise safety by initiating or proliferating fire under certain conditions.
It is recognized that many of the cargoes in this category, labelled ‘reactive hazards’ already fall within the scope of Dangerous Goods regulations. These regulations start from the premise that the transport of Dangerous Goods is prohibited – except in accordance with the details of the regulations.
However, incidents still occur too frequently; as the judge in one casualty litigation explained, disasters are only infrequent due to a “lack of a similar perfect storm of events, and simple good fortune”. All that is required is an alignment of mistakes, oversights, or failed controls. The Group is at pains to explain the dangers associated with these cargoes and emphasize strongly that only reliance on robust diligence or precise emergency response prevents many minor incidents becoming major casualties.
Furthermore, the Group is generating greater awareness overall and urges attention to the need for stringent compliance with mandatory regulations, such as the IMDG Code, and adoption of industry good practices, such as found in the CTU Code.
Such cargoes with reactive hazards include:
Calcium Hypochlorite, a powerful oxidiser, prone to rapid decomposition. In low concentrations, the chlorine content is used as a water cleanser and disinfectant, such as household bleach and swimming pool maintenance. Decomposition – taking place constantly at a very slow rate – is accelerated by higher temperatures and by contamination. The latter can be unpredictable since it necessitates rigorous controls over the raw materials used and the entire manufacturing process.
Charcoal concerns include among others charcoal that is intended for burning on barbecues, shisha pipes etc – sometimes having been treated with accelerants to assist ignition. There has been lengthy debate at IMO to fashion a revised safety framework for transport by sea, that will become mandatory from January 2026. This will remove an unreliable test regime and require that charcoal is always declared as DG.
Cotton and Wool, Fishmeal and Krill and Seed cake are perhaps less in the public eye, but also prone to self-heating and fire, where integrity and care are required both to ensure compliance and maintain safety during transport.
Lithium ion battery hazards are becoming known, but many are emergent, not least as science advances global energy transition. Many incidents to date have involved new batteries; the hazards will only multiply with age and deteriorating condition. While this will challenge the recycling industry, the reality is that all these products, whether new, used, in use, damaged or end of life, will impact the transport and storage industries for decades to come.
The Group calls for continued and thorough research into all the hazards presented by lithium ion batteries and dependent devices. Apart from fire, incidents have revealed risks from toxic gases and vapour cloud explosions that can be critical in transport and storage.
* Press release | Cargoes of Concern
ENDS
About the Cargo Integrity Group
The Cargo Integrity Group brings together international freight transport and cargo handling organisations with different roles in the supply chain and a shared dedication to improving safety, security and environmental performance throughout the logistics supply chain. The Bureau International des Containers, the Container Owners Association, FIATA, the Global Shippers Forum, ICHCA, TT Club and the World Shipping Council are co-operating on a range of activities to further the adoption and implementation of crucial safety practices and regulations.
Cargo Integrity Group Media Contacts
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Bureau International des Containers (BIC) Douglas Owen, Secretary General, [email protected] |
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Container Owners Association (COA) Patrick Hicks, Secretary, [email protected] |
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FIATA (International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations) Pritha Prasad, [email protected] |
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Global Shippers Forum (GSF) James Hookham, Secretary General, [email protected] |
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International Cargo Handling Co-ordination Association (ICHCA International) Peter Owen, Media contact, Portcare International, [email protected] |
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TT Club Peter Owen, Media contact, Portcare International, [email protected] |
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World Shipping Council (WSC) Anna Larsson, Communications Director, [email protected] |
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April 16th, 2025
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
BIC is pleased to announce that Mr. Michel Hennemand, former chairman of BIC and leading expert in container standardization, is this year’s recipient of the prestigious BIC Award.
The award was presented at the BIC headquarters in Paris on the 11th of December 2024. The presentation ceremony was conducted by BIC Chairman Lars Lorenzen and Secretary General Douglas Owen. The BIC Award, established in 2013, recognizes individuals and organizations for their outstanding contributions to the container shipping industry, particularly in the areas of safety, security, sustainability, and standardization—the four pillars of BIC’s mission.
In selecting Mr. Hennemand, the BIC Board of Directors emphasized his commitment to the development of global container standards, his leadership in the container shipping industry, and his dedication to the promotion of standardization and safety throughout the supply chain.
Michel Hennemand has been active in container safety and standards for more than five decades, serving in various leadership roles. He has worked tirelessly on container standardization, as chairman of ISO TC 104 SC1 and of the National Transport Commission at AFNOR (France). As chairman of the Bureau International des Containers (BIC), Michel Hennemand played an instrumental role in advancing the organization’s mission and driving the global dialogue on container safety and innovation. He currently serves as an ISO consultant for BIC, continuing to contribute his expertise to further enhance the organization’s work in the development of international standards.
“The BIC Award goes to someone who is living the values of BIC—the 4S: standardization, safety, security, and sustainability. Michel spent his entire career in most of these categories, embodying these principles throughout his professional life,” said Lars Lorenzen, Chairman of BIC.
“If anybody deserves the BIC Award for his contribution to standardization, it is Michel Hennemand. It is hard to imagine the BIC over these last many years without his leadership and support.” said BIC Secretary General Douglas Owen.
Before his tenure at BIC, Michel Hennemand began his career in 1969 as the Manager of the Technical Department at Bignier-Schmid-Laurent, a European leader in the manufacture of road tankers and tank containers. His expertise in transport equipment manufacturing later led him to positions at Consant Engineering PTY Ltd in South Africa, where he became the Director of the Paris Office, and at Magyar.SA, where he directed the Combined Transport Department. He ultimately joined Bureau Veritas as Director of the Transport Department, where he spent over 20 years shaping industry standards and regulatory frameworks.
“Even today, BIC continues to play a crucial role in the field of standards, particularly in the area of data,” said Michel Hennemand upon receiving the award. “We can be sure that in the coming years, BIC will confirm its position as a key player in the field of transport. Once again, I would like to thank the BIC for the honor bestowed upon me, and in particular the General Secretaries Bertrand Geoffray and Douglas Owen, who have been and continue to be the key figures in our organization, without whom nothing would have been possible.”
ENDS – 468 Words
About BIC
The Bureau International des Containers (BIC) was founded under the auspices of the International Chamber of Commerce in 1933 as a neutral, non-profit, international organization. The BIC seeks to promote efficiency, safety, security, standardization, and sustainability in the container supply chain and today has over 2800 container owning and operating members in 128 countries. Publisher of the BIC Code Register since 1970, the BIC also operates the BoxTech Global Container Database (bic-boxtech.org), providing API-accessible equipment details to help improve efficiency and safety in the supply chain, as well as the BIC Facility Code Database, providing harmonized codes to identify over 17,000 container facilities in 190 countries. The BIC also operates the Global ACEP Database under the guidance of the IMO. The BIC holds official observer status as an NGO at the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the World Customs Organization (WCO), and the United Nations Centre for Trade Facilitation and Electronic Business (UN/CEFACT) and works closely with the ISO and other standards organizations. Learn more at www.bic-code.org.
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