Ship transport

Ship transport is watercraft carrying people (passengers) or goods (cargo).

Sea transport has been the largest carrier of freight throughout recorded history. Although the importance of sea travel for passengers has decreased due to aviation, it is effective for short trips and pleasure cruises. Transport by water is cheaper than transport by air, despite fluctuating exchange rates and CAF charges to account for such.

Ship transport can be over any distance by boat, ship, sailboat or barge, over oceans and lakes, through canals or along rivers. Shipping may be for commerce, recreation or the military purpose. Virtually any material can be moved by water; however, water transport becomes impractical when material delivery is highly time-critical.

Containerization revolutionized ship transport starting in the 1970s. "General cargo" includes goods packaged in boxes, cases, pallets, and barrels. When a cargo is carried in more than one mode, it is intermodal or co-modal.

Merchant shipping

Freight transport

Freight transport is the physical process of transporting commodities and merchandise goods and cargo. The term shipping originally referred to transport by sea, but is extended in American English to refer to transport by land or air (International English: "carriage") as well. "Logistics", a term borrowed from the military environment, is also fashionably used in the same sense.

Modes of shipment

Ground

Land or "ground" shipping can be by train or by truck (International English: lorry). In air and sea shipments, ground transport is required to take the cargo from its place of origin to the airport or seaport and then to its destination because it is not always possible to establish a production facility near ports due to limited coastlines of countries. Ground transport is typically more affordable than air, but more expensive than sea especially in developing countries like India, where inland infrastructure is not efficient.

Shipment of cargo by trucks, directly from the shipper's place to the destination, is known as a door to door shipment and more formally as multimodal transport. Trucks and trains make deliveries to sea and air ports where cargo is moved in bulk.

Rose George

Rose George is a British journalist and author. She began writing in 1994, as an intern at The Nation magazine in New York. Later, she became senior editor and writer at COLORS magazine, the bilingual "global magazine about local cultures" published in eighty countries and based first in Rome, then Paris, then Venice. In 1999, she moved to London and began a freelance career, and has since written for the Independent on Sunday, Arena, the Financial Times, Daily Telegraph, Details and others. Along the way, she has been war correspondent in Kosovo for Condé Nast Traveler magazine, and was twice a guest at Saddam Hussein's birthday party. Until 2010, she was senior editor at large for Tank, a quarterly magazine of fashion, art, reportage and culture based in London.

Industry

Industry is the production of goods or services within an economy. The major source of revenue of a group or company is the indicator of its relevant industry. When a large group has multiple sources of revenue generation, it is considered to be working in different industries. Manufacturing industry became a key sector of production and labour in European and North American countries during the Industrial Revolution, upsetting previous mercantile and feudal economies. This occurred through many successive rapid advances in technology, such as the production of steel and coal.

Following the Industrial Revolution, possibly a third of the world's economic output is derived that is from manufacturing industries. Many developed countries and many developing/semi-developed countries (People's Republic of China, India etc.) depend significantly on manufacturing industry. Industries, the countries they reside in, and the economies of those countries are interlinked in a complex web of interdependence.

Seafarers UK

Seafarers UK is a large national charity in the United Kingdom working to unite the maritime charity sector to address the specific needs of all seafarers and their families, from those just embarking on a career at sea to those facing distress through unemployment or homelessness and loss of livelihood through accidents at sea.

Seafarers UK is able to use its experience of working with the Royal Navy, Merchant Navy and fishing fleets to raise money and distribute it where it is needed. As an umbrella, Seafarers UK can lead the sector in maximising the effectiveness of its fundraising activities. Over the past 10 years, £26 million has been granted to help those in need of support.

Seafarers UK is the working name for the King George’s Fund for Sailors, a registered charity which has been helping seafarers since 1917.

Challenge events

Seafarers UK runs several very successful challenge events. Their most successful is the 24 Peaks Challenge which has run since 2006. This is probably one of the most demanding and exhilarating mountain events organised as a charity challenge and the ultimate team building experience. In the beautiful surroundings of the Lake District teams of around 6 climb 24 peaks, all over 2,400 feet in just 24 hours. In addition to the physical challenge, each team is asked to raise at least £5,000 which is then used to provide essential support to those in need within the maritime community.