How Are Steel Coils Packed for Sea Freight: Eye to Sky or Eye to Wall?
How Are Steel Coils Packed for Sea Freight: Eye to Sky or Eye to Wall?
Direct answer: eye to sky means the coil stands on its edge with the bore facing upward, so a C-hook or a through-bore sling can lift it; eye to wall means the axis is horizontal and the coil rests on its outer diameter. Eye to sky is the usual default for sea freight because vertical coils stack and lash more predictably inside a container, while eye to wall is chosen when the buyer's decoiler needs a horizontal feed.
| Aspect | Eye to sky (vertical) | Eye to wall (horizontal) |
|---|---|---|
| Coil axis | Vertical, bore faces up | Horizontal, bore faces sideways |
| Lifting method | C-hook or through-bore sling | Forklift or sling under the wrap |
| Stacking in container | Higher - coils nest side by side | Lower - limited by outer diameter |
| Main damage risk | Edge dent, moisture ingress at the bore | Point loading and wrap abrasion at the contact line |
| Typical choice | Export sea freight, heavier coils | Buyers whose line requires horizontal feed |
What the protection layers actually do
Both orientations share the same protective stack: VCI or vapour-barrier paper against the steel, a full outer wrap, circumferential and radial strapping, and edge protectors on the rims. The difference is where the load sits. In eye-to-sky packing the weight travels down the coil wall, so the rim needs edge protection; in eye-to-wall packing the weight sits on one line of the outer wrap, which is why that orientation is avoided for soft or thinly coated material.
Inside the container, coils are blocked with timber or airbags against fore-and-aft movement. This is the part buyers underestimate - a coil that shifts during a two-week sailing arrives with edge damage that no amount of wrapping would have prevented.
How to specify it in the PO
State the orientation explicitly, then state the lifting method the destination will use. A coil packed eye to sky and unloaded at a yard with no C-hook becomes a manual handling problem at the worst possible moment.
If the material is thin-gauge or carries a high-gloss or PVDF finish, mention it - those are the cases where eye-to-wall is normally declined and where extra interleaving is added.
What to inspect at loading
Photographs before the doors close: the blocking arrangement, the strapping pattern, the edge protectors and the container floor condition. These four images settle almost every damage claim before it starts.
