Container loads for the twelve tricycle models

Every number on this page is arithmetic on a carton, not an estimate. If your supplier's figures differ by more than a few percent, one of you is guessing.

The two container types we quote against

These are the two buyers actually book on this range: a 20GP to test a model, a 40HQ once it proves itself. What matters is the usable figure, not the nominal one — a 40HQ is 76 CBM on paper and about 68 CBM once cartons are stacked inside it.

All twelve models, both container sizes

Cartons and pieces, calculated at 28 and 68 CBM usable respectively. Every row is floor(usable ÷ CBM) cartons, then cartons × pieces.

Volume-limited, not weight-limited

This is worth understanding because it changes how you negotiate. A 40HQ has a payload of roughly 26,000 kg. Loaded with V888 — 333 cartons at 23 kg — the gross weight is about 7,659 kg. The container is at 29% of its weight capacity and 100% of its volume.

Two consequences. First, you can never negotiate a tricycle order on weight: there is no weight headroom to trade. Second, if a supplier quotes you a much lower carton CBM, ask to see the packed carton — a tricycle that suddenly fits 0.15 CBM is either disassembled or missing packing.

The mixed-load method

Cartons, not pieces, are what fill a container. So when you mix models, convert every line to cartons and to CBM, add the CBM, and stop when you reach 68.

• Cartons per line = pieces ÷ pieces-per-carton, rounded up.
• CBM per line = cartons × CBM per carton.
• Total CBM must stay at or below 68 for a 40HQ.
• Pieces = cartons actually shipped × pieces per carton — not the number you ordered, if the last carton is part-full.

A worked example

Four models at 50 pieces each, then one more model to take the container up to the line:

The top-up line is the whole method: subtract the block you have already committed to, then divide what is left by the CBM of the carton you want to add. Sixty-seven point nine CBM against 68 available, so 294 cartons is as far as that block goes before you are booking a second box.

The 50-piece lines do not divide evenly into 6-piece cartons: 50 pieces is 8 full cartons plus one part carton of 2. That part carton is the reason your carton count is 9 and not 8.33, and why a mixed load always ends with a few cartons that are not full.

Where the space actually goes

Two practical limits decide how close to 68 CBM you get. The first is carton size harmony: mixing 76 x 57 x 53 with 76 x 56 x 42 wastes less than mixing either with a carton of a different footprint, because the stack stays rectangular. The second is the door: nothing taller than the door opening goes in last, and the last row is often hand-stacked.

We photograph the container as it closes for exactly this reason. If a load comes in at 64 CBM instead of 68, the photographs usually show why — and it is usually a part-full carton row at the door.