Malcom McLean: The Man Who Changed The World

Malcolm McLean, was born on November 14, 1913, in Maxton, North Carolina, the son of a farmer. A natural entrepreneur, he got his start selling his mother’s eggs on commission while still in school. Upon graduating the family didn’t have enough money for him to go to college so McLean, along with his brother and sister, invested their savings in buying an old truck and started a trucking business in 1934.

The genesis for containerization first came to him in 1937 while sitting in his truck in New Jersey, having just driven up from North Carolina with a shipment of cotton. He was forced to sit and wait for hours as dockworkers unloaded trucks piece by piece until finally it was his turn to pull up to the dock. Although it would take him 20 years to make the dream a reality, it was then that he knew there had to be a more efficient way… read more >