How many Isotec containers do you need?

Imagine a plan that starts with 'let's buy ten containers' because of the vehicle count. The useful question is how many units are occupied at the same time: being loaded or on route, returning or being unloaded, waiting for washing, drying and preparation, or temporarily unavailable.

Find the concurrent peak, not daily departures. A container is still out of the pool while it is on route, being washed on the ramp, or waiting for plate and cargo preparation. 'Three departures × two containers' describes the work leaving the depot; it does not describe the inventory when return, washing and preparation overlap. The correct count comes from overlapping event intervals, not a universal departures-times-cycle shortcut.

An event-table example (entirely hypothetical). Suppose four Isotec units leave at 08:00 and two more at 11:00. The first four return at 16:00 and are unavailable until 20:00 for washing, drying and preparation; two units are still on route. Two further units are unavailable for maintenance. Between 16:00 and 20:00 the pool need is 4 in preparation + 2 on route + 2 unavailable = 8 units. This example is not a universal cycle time or reserve recommendation; write your own timestamps as event rows.

Measure the pool with these event rows. For a week, record the start and finish time, required count and size for loading, route, unloading, return, washing, drying, plate and cargo preparation, and downtime from maintenance or damage. The highest concurrent total gives the operational lower bound for the container pool; a controlled reserve is a separate management decision.

Choose the size mix after this count. The GEBHARDT TBX family covers models from 410 to 1,500 litres, with source tables listing 500 or 700 kg by model; dimensions and the exact model version should be confirmed. Volume, load dimensions, vehicle and door dimensions, wheeled or pallet base, and handling equipment belong together in the needs analysis.

The Aris Makina needs-analysis form asks about goods and crate dimensions, preferred volume and load, base and forklift or pallet-truck use, plate-freezing temperature, and vehicle dimensions. Send those fields with a one-week event table so the Isotec model, container pool and plate pool can be sized together.