At what tonnage does a cargo become defined as bulk?
1 ton, 10 tons, 100 tons, 1000 tons?
The part of the ship where the cargo is stored is called the "bulkhead." Tankers are defined as "Wet bulk carriers," while dry cargo ships are defined as "Dry bulk carriers." If the liquid touches the bulkhead, it's considered "wet," and if it’s dry cargo, it’s considered "dry."
In short, whether a cargo is considered bulk or not depends not on the quantity of the cargo, but on what touches the ship's bulkhead.
For example: Let’s imagine we are transporting 1000 tons of mineral oil in iron barrels on a general cargo ship. Is this ship a tanker? No, it’s still a general cargo ship because it’s the iron barrels that touch the bulkhead, not the oil.
Another example: On our Container ship, we carry furniture, televisions, wheat, liquid cargo like wine, and even gas in pressurized tanks inside containers. Now, let’s imagine all the containers on the ship are pressurized gas containers. Is this ship a gas carrier? No, it’s still a container ship, because it's the container, not the gas, that touches the bulkhead.
In Ro-Ro ships, regardless of what’s inside the trailer, it’s the trailer itself that touches the bulkhead and is defined as roll-on, roll-off because it’s unloaded using a tractor.
In the Covertainer concept, the cargo never touches the bulkhead. Instead, the plastic structure protecting the cargo touches the bulkhead, which makes it parcel cargo, not bulk, because it’s the plastic structure, not the cargo itself, that touches the bulkhead.