swapbody

container

Also known as: demountable

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Last updated

June 17, 2026

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The term "swapbody" refers to a demountable container used in intermodal freight transport. It is similar in principle to a maritime shipping container but is more lightly constructed, cheaper, and easier to transship. Unlike maritime containers, which must withstand stacking, swapbodies do not have this requirement. They are designed with characteristics of highway truck or trailer bodies and are used in conjunction with railroad flatcars for long-distance hauling, combining the efficiency of rail with the flexibility of highway transport for collection and delivery.1

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…internal COFC traffic used the swapbody, or demountable, which is similar in principle to, but more lightly constructed, cheaper, and easier to transship than the maritime container; the latter has to withstand stacking several deep on board ship and at ports, which is not a requisite for the swapbody. As…
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…internal COFC traffic used the swapbody, or demountable, which is similar in principle to, but more lightly constructed, cheaper, and easier to transship than the maritime container; the latter has to withstand stacking several deep on board ship and at ports, which is not a requisite for the swapbody. As…
Read More