Modified boxes for the country's biggest box port
Felixstowe is the UK's largest container port, and Savills describes it as handling about 40% of the country's container trade. Trinity and Landguard are the best-known terminals. Around them sit warehouses, haulier yards and customs areas, and plenty of that activity needs a steel box that is not for shipping: a gatehouse, a tool store, a plant room, a secure cage or a welfare cabin.
That is the work we do. We take containers, either yours or ones we source, and cut and frame them to a drawing, with openings framed into the rails by coded welders. Our engineers can visit your yard to measure up, and we organise delivery there through our logistics partners. The quote is itemised, arrives within 24 hours in the working week, and confirms lead time in writing.
Felixstowe operators who use modified containers
- Terminal tenants and port services Businesses serving the terminals need site stores, workshop cabins, gate and security huts and plant housing. Modified containers go in quickly and can be moved when the layout changes.
- Hauliers and container yards Haulage firms with yards around Dock Road and Carr Road use modified containers for tool stores, driver welfare, tyre and parts stores, and lockable cages with roller shutters.
- Freight forwarders and warehouse operators Felixstowe Business Park sits opposite Dock Gate No.1. Warehouse occupiers there need extra covered storage, offices on hardstanding, and plant rooms for racking and charging equipment.
- Freeport East occupiers Freeport East covers Felixstowe and Harwich and targets clean energy production, traders, manufacturers and suppliers. New occupiers need temporary stores and plant enclosures before permanent buildings are built.
Larger container runs for the port area
Port-side enquiries usually come as a run of identical units: six storage boxes with a roller shutter and a personnel door, a pair of linked containers forming a workshop, or a stack with a steel stair and landing for a first-floor office. Containers are painted in a RAL colour chosen by the operator, and internal frames, shelving mounts and lifting points are fitted to the drawing. A run can be released in stages, with staged payments available on multi-unit orders.
What we do to a container for Felixstowe use
We frame structural openings into the rails, fit doors, windows and roller shutters, link containers side to side and stack them, cut units down to size, repair damaged panels and corners, and repaint. Our capacity is around eight units a week, so a haulier wanting a dozen stores can plan on two weeks. Framed openings keep the box stiff when it is stacked or lifted again. See container modifications and container repairs.
A modified container on port-side land can need planning consent, depending on its use, position and how long it stays. The authority is East Suffolk Council, which explains the process on its planning permission guidance page. Land inside the Freeport East customs area may carry extra site rules, so ask the site operator as well.
Steel to go with the boxes
Alongside container work we fabricate the steel that sits around it: walkways and stairs between stacked units, handrails, platforms, and enclosures for generators, chargers and switchgear. Structural pieces are BS EN 1090 controlled and can be UKCA or CE marked, and hot-dip galvanising is arranged by us, which suits a salt-air location. Stairs and walkways are supplied to fit, and your own installer fits them.
Where Felixstowe's port-side land sits
Felixstowe Business Park is opposite Dock Gate No.1, and the Carr Road and Dock Road area holds warehouses within a mile of the main port entrance. A government customs site plan for the Freeport East area also shows Darrell Road and Sunderland Road. Schneider Business Park, mostly offices, is another named site, and so is Summit Business Park. All of these are typical places where yard space is tight and a box with an opening cut in it is a quick fix.
Why a Bedford workshop can cost Felixstowe less
Cutting, welding, finishing and checking all happen in our own 12,000 sq ft workshop, so no stage is passed to a subcontractor with its own margin. Delivery to Felixstowe goes through our logistics partners and shows as its own line on the quote. Put the two together and the total often comes in below a local fabricator, which is easy to check: send us the same drawing you've sent them.
Delivery and site visits in Felixstowe
Felixstowe is 108 road miles from Marston Moretaine and about 137 minutes by car, using the A421, A603 and A14. We organise delivery through our logistics partners and book the day with you, since a loaded lorry takes longer and the A14 carries heavy port traffic. Everything is done in-house, so the price often comes out lower than a nearer fabricator's.
Port-area yards are often busy and tight. Our engineers visit to measure up, so confirm the gate width and height, the surface, whether a pass or induction is needed and where the container will be placed. Say what lifting is on site, and we agree the offload with you. Fitting on site is for your own installer, since we supply the work finished.
How a container job runs
- 01.Send what you have
A drawing, a marked-up sketch or a photo. Tell us how many units, what they're for and where they need to end up. Form, email or WhatsApp.
- 02.Itemised quote in 24 hours
Priced per unit, with the lead time confirmed in writing, so it drops straight into your order.
- 03.Order against your PO
Multi-unit orders are paid in stages: deposit, stage payment, balance on completion.
- 04.Units in
We can source the containers, or bring yours in to the workshop. If it helps, we send an engineer to your site first to see the job.
- 05.Built inside our unit
Cut, framed, welded and painted by coded welders in the 7,000 sq ft main shop, with the 5,000 sq ft second building for fabrication.
- 06.Checked and delivered
Checked against the drawing, then delivered to your site through our logistics partners. Progress photos by WhatsApp or email if you want them.
Work we take on
- Container modifications: conversions and modifications to drawing, single units or batches
- Structural openings: side openings, doors, roller shutters, linking and cut-downs
- Container repairs: panel, door and rail repairs and repaints for depots and fleets
- Steel enclosures: generator, acoustic, plant and battery housings
- Skids and frames: skids, machine bases, lifting frames and supports
- Commercial fabrication: fabrication to drawing, structural steelwork, one-offs and batches
- Stairs and fire escapes: supplied ready for your installer to fit
- Walkways and railings: handrails, platforms and ladders, supplied to fit
Frequently asked questions
Can you modify containers for a Felixstowe haulier or port-side yard?
Yes. Send the drawing or a sketch with the number of units and the openings needed. We frame the openings into the rails and finish the unit, then organise delivery to your yard.
Do you supply the containers or do I?
Either. You can supply the units, which suits operators who already own boxes, or we source them for the job. The quote says which, and the lead time is confirmed in writing.
Does a modified container in Felixstowe need planning permission?
It can, depending on use, position and how long it stays. East Suffolk Council is the authority. Inside the Freeport East customs area, ask the site operator as well. Get the answer before you order.
Do you deliver containers to Felixstowe?
Yes. The route is 108 road miles via the A421, A603 and A14, about 137 minutes by car. Our logistics partners make the run on a day agreed with you, and a loaded lorry takes longer.
Nearby areas
We also quote for firms in Ipswich, Colchester, Bury St Edmunds, Chelmsford and Norwich. See every town on the areas we serve page.