Tips on How Shippers and Carriers Can Team Up to Enhance Efficient Truckload Shipping

Many businesses ship by road and if you are one of them, it’s almost obvious that you will have to decide between less-than-truckload (LTL) and full truckload (FTL) shipping. The majority of consumers have the common presumption that FTL shipping in the US is obviously more expensive which results in fears of using this kind of shipping.

One thing you need to understand is that when used in the right circumstances, full truckload shipping can be advantageous in various ways.

What is full truckload (FTL) shipping?

In simple terms, full truckload shipping is the kind of shipping whereby your shipment is the only thing on the truck or van. This is quite different from less-than-truckload shipping which involves hauling of goods from different distributors to different customers.

For FTL shipping, the carrier will have only one point of pickup and one point of destination, unlike LTL shipping where there are single or multiple points of pickup and multiple destination points. With FTL shipping, the truck or van will only make necessary stops such as driver rest breaks which can result in faster transit times.

When is FTL shipping most applicable?

To tap into the benefits of FTL shipping, you ought to know when this kind of shipping is most applicable. In this light, here are the freight characteristics that call for full truckload shipping:

• High-volume destination

• Fast-delivery freight

• High-weight or high-volume weight

• Freight that requires specialized equipment to transport

What are the rewards of using Full truckload shipping?

When used for the right circumstances, full truckload shipping offers the following benefits:

1. Fewer hassles

If your cargo is abnormally huge compared to what most LTL carriers deal with, you may have quite a lot of trouble trying to work out the perfect weight and size measurement of your shipments to ensure that you meet the carrier’s specifications. This can be a troublesome situation for you especially if the cargo cannot be broken down into smaller, manageable portions.

Besides, reducing your cargo into smaller multiple parts will only increase your shipment costs. To avoid these challenges and restrictions of LTL shipping, you can take advantage of FTL shipping since it has not size and weight restrictions.

2. Reduced damage or loss risk

When using an entire van or truck to haul your shipment, you won’t have to worry about your goods being handled en route. There will not be a single case where the driver moves your goods to unload someone else’s shipment.

That way, you won’t have to worry about your cargo being damaged or getting lost while in transit. Besides, you can use different methods that will let you know whether your cargo was at any point tampered with while being transported.

As if that’s not enough, you won’t have to deal with cases where a shipper may want to blame you for damage caused to their shipment by your cargo, and vice versa.

3. Negotiable rates

The shipment rate offered by LTL carriers is not subject to negotiation. When you opt for LTL shipping, one thing you have to keep in mind is that the amount that you are asked to pay already has a discount to it, and is therefore not adjustable further.

Even though you may have the ability to choose between different carriers, the fact remains: the rate is not negotiable. FTL shipping, on the other hand, gives you better flexibility when it comes to negotiating, and there are multiple considerations that can allow you to save money.

4. Faster delivery

If you want your shipment to arrive faster for whatever reason, FTL shipping is the way to go. That’s in consideration that the truck or van will travel to the specified destination without extra pickup or delivery points. With full truckload shipping, you can shave off as much as two days from the transit time, hence save quite a lot of time. This can be a good thing especially if your shipment contains perishable goods.

5. Save money

One of the most relished benefits of full truckload shipping is that it is usually cheaper when you are shipping heavy or large goods or if you ship in bulk. When combined with the ability to negotiate the amount charged depending on various factors, FTL shipping will save you a substantial amount of money in the long run.

Final thoughts:

Full truckload shipping can be beneficial but only when used for the right circumstances. Of course, choosing the right partners is also important if you want to enjoy the maximum benefits of FTL shipping. It all depends on the factors that make FTL shipping is a sensible shipping option for you.

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