80th Anniversary of Maersk Line

On 12 July Maersk celebrated 80th Anniversary of Maersk Line.

On July, 12 1928, “Leise Maersk”, the first vessel to depart in Maersk’s liner service, sailed from Baltimore on the U.S. East Coast en route to the Far East via the Panama Canal. In her holds were Ford car parts and general cargo. Leise Maersk was carrying 3,600 tons of cargo, the equivalent to 200 twenty-foot containers (TEU). She reached Japan 59 days after departing from Baltimore, her next destination was the Philippines where she arrived on the 72nd day. On her homebound voyage, she carried sugar, silk, and oil products.

During the 1930’s, Maersk Line expanded this service, called the Panama Line, which then numbered 9 modern vessels. In those days, there were no containers. Cargo was transported on trucks and trains to the port and stored in warehouses.

In 1956, the container revolution was sparked. The first container was shipped aboard the “Ideal X” from Port Newark, New Jersey to Houston, Texas. The container was the invention of Malcolm McLean. It is said that McLean, while sitting in a truck waiting for the cargo to be reloaded onto a ship, realised that rather than loading and unloading the truck, the truck body itself, with some minor modifications, could be the container that was transported.

In 1973 Maersk Line ordered its first dedicated container vessels and in 1975, “Adrian Maersk” with a capacity of 1,400 TEU undertook Maersk Line’s first containerised sailing.

In the 1990’s Maersk Line’s focus was cooperation with other lines (P&O Container Lines and Sea-Land) and acquisitions (East Asiatic Company in 1993 and Sea-Land in 1999). Maersk Line simultaneously developed its vessels.

In 1996 “Regina Maersk” became the world’s largest and most modern container vessel with a capacity of 6,000 TEU and a crew of 15. She only ruled the seas for a year as in 1997, the “Sovereign Maersk” took over with its 6,600 TEU.

In 2006 “Emma Maersk” with a capacity to carry more than 11,000 TEU set new standards for economical, safe, and environmentally friendly shipping.

Source: Seanews