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 mong the many hats exhibit managers must don on a daily basis, the shipping chapeau likely ranks among the most important. For no matter how well you design your exhibit, promote your presence, and train your staffers, all your efforts are for naught if your booth doesn't show up on time and in good condition.
But understanding the wacky world of trade show transportation takes more than simply filling out a FedEx form and bidding your booth adieu. You've got to know not only where your freight is headed and when it has to be there, but which shipping method is best for you based on countless variables. EXHIBITOR spoke with several industry experts to put together this primer on shipping that offers an explanation of the five most common shipping methods along with their pros and cons. Armed with this information, you will be better prepared to get your booth to the show on time and in one piece - and you'll don that shipping chapeau with a little more ease.
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Common Carriers: Inexpensive, LTL Shipments
As its name suggests, a common carrier is typically a ground-transportation provider that moves goods for the general public (i.e., for common customers and delivery points) as opposed to a contract carrier that moves goods under contract for a specific customer. Since the service is used by the general public, the term implies that your shipment is mixed with other general-public shipments.
"Common carriers use a cross-docking process that starts when your freight - along with that of several other customers - is picked up using a city trailer or straight truck and then transferred to the shipping company's main terminal where it is unloaded," says Brian Darwen, president of Showtime Freight Services Inc., in Alliston, ON, Canada. "Your shipment and others are then sorted and consolidated, and eventually placed into a highway trailer destined for a specific city. Your freight may be unloaded, consolidated, and reloaded like this several times before it reaches the show city, where it's likely unloaded again, and consolidated onto another city or straight truck for show-site delivery."
Most city trucks and straight trucks are 24 or 26 feet long and just shy of 8 feet wide; whereas a highway truck (i.e., the storage compartment of a traditional tractor-trailer) can be up to 53 feet long and 8-feet-6-inches wide. Common carriers typically accept crates, pallets, rolls of carpet, and loose cartons. These items can be floor loaded, rather than stacked vertically, and may or may not be attached to the trailer walls or tied down during transport. "Prior to pickup, you can request that your common carrier secure the freight with straps," Darwen says. "But when the load is transferred from trailer to trailer en route, straps can be accidentally omitted on various legs of the trip."
"Common carriers use the National Motor Freight Classification (NMFC) system for pricing,"
says Tom Beard, vice president of marketing and sales at Northlake, IL-based Champion Logistics Group. "Based on the density, stowability, ease of handling, fragility, and liability, each commodity is placed in one of 18 NMFC classes. The lower the class number, the lower the price. Most exhibit materials are class 125, but printed materials, for example, are class 65, which is about half the rate of 125. Once a class is established, common carriers consider weight categories (e.g., less than 500 pounds, 500 to 1,000 pounds, etc.), origin zip code, destination
zip code, and accessorial charges
to establish price." Additionally, as
with almost all other transportation
methods, common carriers may
add surcharges such as fuel,
bonds, border charges, etc.
Many common carriers have trade
show divisions that specialize in exhibit
transportation, such as ABF Freight System Inc. and YRC
Worldwide Inc., which is the corporate umbrella for Yellow
Transportation and Roadway.
Benefits
 A common carrier is one of the least expensive ground-transport options available, and the method is well suited for less-than-truckload (LTL) shipments of a few crates, pallets, and/or boxes.
Concerns
Since city and straight trucks, which are smaller than highway tractor-trailers, may be used at various points in the shipping process, the width of your shipment should not exceed 96 inches, which is the maximum size allowed in most city and straight trucks. Similarly, the maximum weight on a city or straight truck is approximately 10,000 pounds.
Pad-wrapped items are generally not accepted by common carriers, and most carriers will refuse to ship goods that are improperly packed.
Given the multiple consolidation points en route to a destination, common carriers are more likely to run into delays than van lines, which make fewer (if any) stops en route. Plus, shipping times are often longer than other methods, so common carriers are not well suited to any kind of rush delivery.
Frequent loading and unloading - not to mention the fact that most shipments are floor loaded and not attached to trailer walls - increases the risk of damage.
Suggestions
Many common-carrier trucks are equipped with powered lift gates for loading and unloading shipments. However, if your shipment requires a lift gate, always put the request in writing prior to shipment, and know that some carriers may charge extra for it.
Decrease the risk of damage by using durable crates and/or well-secured pallets that can be easily moved via forklifts and pallet jacks.
"Proper packing and labeling are critical when using common carriers," Beard says. "Label each piece of your shipment, including individual pieces wrapped on a pallet. That's because carriers sometimes break down pallets to fit more items into the trailers, cramming individual pieces into every nook and cranny available."
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Van Lines:
Careful, Costly, and Direct
 Historically used to move household furnishings, van lines generally pick up a full truckload (FTL) shipment at one location and deliver it directly to its destination. In some circumstances, however, a van line will put more than one shipment into the same trailer headed to a single show destination. Some carriers require that any partial shipment
must take up at least 12 feet of the trailer, Darwen says, but others will allow you to ship as little as one pallet.
Van lines typically use 53-foot trailers, with an inside height of 110 inches (just over 9 feet) and width of 102 inches (roughly 8.5 feet). The maximum weight the trailer can hold is approximately 40,000 pounds. "Within the trailer, goods are packed and stacked to accommodate as much material as possible into a single load," says Gary Nosko, regional sales manager for Unigroup Inc., the Fenton, MO-based parent company of United Van Lines LLC and Mayflower Transit LLC. "As such, load bars and stacking skids are used to secure the freight to the sides of the trailer and to allow pallets to be stacked together without touching and/or crushing each other."
In addition, several van lines use air-ride (cushioned-suspension) trailers, which lessen the amount and severity of jarring and shifting en route compared to traditional non-cushioned trailers. Given their protective properties, most van lines accept blanket- or pad-wrapped items, crates, pallets, etc., and can even provide pads and proper crating if necessary.
Shipping costs are based on the linear feet used in the trailer, the miles traveled, and the fuel used. Weight isn't typically a factor in pricing unless your shipment is remarkably heavy. In addition, these charges are governed by tariffs, which are basically U.S. and international regulations regarding transportation costs. Generally speaking, Darwen adds, a full trailer of exhibit materials is less than 30,000 pounds.
Aside from small-package carriers such as FedEx and UPS, van lines offer the fastest service. For example, a van line with team drivers could easily pick up in Los Angeles on Friday and deliver to a show in Toronto on Monday morning. Add-on fees typically include blanket-wrapping charges, extra-driver fees, wait time, etc. You'll also pay extra for fragile freight and blanket-wrapped or mixed shipments (a mix of blanket-wrapped items and crates/pallets).
As with common carriers, many van-line companies offer trade show divisions, such as Allied Van Lines Inc., United Van Lines LLC, North American Van Lines Inc., Atlas Van Lines Inc., Mayflower Transit LLC, etc.
Benefits
"Since load bars and stacking skids are used to safely stack goods vertically, van lines can accommodate more freight than floor-loaded common carriers," Nosko says.
Given the straps, pads, bars, blankets, and air-ride suspensions, and the fact that the same trailer is used to move goods from the shipping dock to the receiving dock (rather than the carrier loading and unloading your shipment several times en route), risk of damage is extremely low compared to other shipping methods.
Since the truck usually moves directly from the shipping dock to its final destination, there are fewer chances of delays along the way. While accidents and inclement weather happen, shorter transit times and less loading and unloading make for fast, safe shipping.
Concerns
The decreased risk of damage, expediency, and point-to-point transport comes at a price. Van lines are often the most expensive shipping method, aside from expedited airfreight.
Van lines are best suited for FTL shippers, and can be quite costly for LTL shipments. For example, if you have a fragile LTL shipment that can't withstand common-carrier handling, you'll likely pay for space you don't even use inside the trailer just to obtain fragile-handling benefits.
Suggestions
Trade show transportation is highly competitive in the van-line industry. So shop around, compare prices, and negotiate discounts whenever possible.
According to Nosko, plenty of extra services and equipment are available, including everything from crating your property to supplying extra pads and blankets. But be sure your provider knows your needs prior to pickup.
Keep in mind that while van lines can accommodate blanket-wrapped items, these pieces may actually incur special-handling charges once they arrive on the show floor, cautions Chuck Michel, vice president of trade show services at Elitexpo Cargo Systems Inc. of South Elgin, IL.
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Rail Shipping: Slow, Steady, and Penny Wise
Logistically, rail shipping works a lot like shipping via an ocean container, says Mike Ellis, president of EA Logistics in Chicago. "An empty semi-trailer is delivered to your company's dock (or that of your exhibit house), and you load your shipment into it. A tractor then picks up the trailer and delivers it to a rail yard, where it is hoisted onto a flatbed rail car and transported to a rail yard close to the show's venue. Your trailer is then hoisted off the flatbed, hooked up to a tractor, and delivered to its destination,
be that a marshalling yard or straight to the convention
center. The process works in reverse for the return trip."
A typical domestic cargo container is the same size
as a highway trailer, i.e., 53 feet long by 8-feet-6-inches wide. Since shippers are usually responsible for loading the containers themselves, you can use whatever type of packing materials you'd like, including pad-wrapped
pallets, crates, boxes, etc. You can also stack materials
or simply floor load them into the trailer.
Rail transportation tends to have more bumps than
other methods - literally. So while rail carriers won't
restrict your packaging, it's definitely to your advantage
to package your booth even more securely than with other methods to absorb the shock and motion of the rails.
According to Ellis, rail freight is typically charged on
a per-mile basis only. Thus, you're paying for an entire
rail container whether you fill it or not. "As you might have
guessed, rail shipping is best for exhibitors
that have an entire truckload,
or several truckloads, of exhibit
materials going to a particular
show," Ellis adds. "After all,
shipping a half-empty container is the same price
as shipping a full one."
Rail shipping is
an affordable option
for most exhibitors.
Compared to a full
truckload shipment
of exhibit materials
handled by a van
line, the same rail
shipment will run
you roughly 30
percent to 40
percent less, Ellis
says. However, the low price comes with longer delivery times. Deliveries typically run between two and 10 days depending on geography and whether an express train
is used. In addition, unexpected incidents can cause
significant delays. For example, a minor derailment
outside a small town can shut down entire rail lines for
days within a wide geographic region.
Transportation firms offering rail-shipping services include EA Logistics, Ryco Logistics Inc., and Access America Transport, among others.
Benefits
Rail shipping rivals common carriers in affordability. However, it's best suited for FTL shippers with plenty of time on their hands.
Since you load your own trailer, packing can be done at your leisure, rather than on a provider's timetable.
Concerns
 In terms of delivery dates, rail is not as precise as air or truck modes because it's prone to unanticipated delays. A single derailment or a flooded railroad bridge can cause delays throughout the entire rail system. And contrary to tractor-trailer shipping, it's not easy to divert your freight to another route. Thus, delivery via rail may lag by one to three days after the stated delivery date, assuming there are no extraordinary delays along the way.
Suggestions
Since any delays can be lengthy and widespread, build large time buffers - perhaps up to a week - into shipping schedules to absorb any delays.
Consider shipping your exhibit via ground or air
methods to the show to ensure that it arrives on time.
But take advantage of the cost benefits of rail,
and ship your exhibit back via rail,
assuming your deadline for the
return trip is more flexible.
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 Airfreight: Fast but Spendy
If you need speed and careful handling but you don't have a full truckload of goods, you'll probably want to consider airfreight for your shipment. Airfreight works much the same way as passenger air travel, as goods are typically moved on a plane along with other shipments directly from one city to another. Often, these goods are transported to and from the airport via ground carrier, but the majority of the distance your shipment travels is usually via plane.
"In some circumstances, however, freight designated as airfreight will be shipped by truck," Michel says. "If your air carrier has expedited truck service available that still meets your service requirements, then this method will be used."
All cargo that fits within a 53-foot tractor-trailer and is less than 80 inches tall should easily fit within a cargo plane, Ellis says. Airfreight carriers typically accept boxes, crates, and pallets, but blanket-wrapped shipments aren't allowed on cargo planes.
Costs are usually calculated using actual or dimensional weight. "Dimensional weight is computed by figuring the shipment's length times the width times the height (in inches), and that total is divided by 194," Ellis says. "If this dimensional-weight figure is greater than an item's actual weight, the dimensional weight is used to figure cost. If the number is less, the actual weight is used."
Generally, the faster you want your shipment delivered, the more you'll pay. Most forwarders offer same day, next day, second day, third day, and three-to-five-day deferred services. You can also specify morning service or a time-specific service with these options.
When shipping via air, however, Transportation Security Administration rules do apply, says Dorene Kolb, director
of marketing and sales support for Lynden Expo Air, a Seattle-based division of Lynden Inc. "Check with your provider to ensure your commodity is something that can fly on a passenger aircraft," she says. "If anything is not allowed, your provider can use a cargo-only carrier."
Airfreight carriers with trade show divisions and those carriers providing exclusive service for the exhibit industry include: Airways Freight Corp., EA Logistics, Lynden Expo Air, Elitexpo, Champion Logistics Group, and Sho-Air International, among others.
Benefits
Compared to a road trip on a common carrier, an airfreight shipment doesn't suffer as much jostling en route. For example, Kolb estimates that her company saw fewer than two damage claims for every 1,000 shipments in 2009.
The more your shipment weighs, the less you'll typically pay per pound for shipping it. For example, you might pay $3 per pound for a 150-pound shipment. But a 200-pound shipment might only cost you $2.50 per pound.
Concerns
While a typical tractor-trailer will house shipments that are up to 109 inches high, a cargo plane is limited to 80 inches in height, which means particularly tall shipments can't be transported via cargo plane.
Since airfreight costs are based on weight (either actual or dimensional weight, whichever is greater), always run the numbers to determine if airfreight is right for you. Depending on the actual versus dimensional weight, large but lightweight packages can actually cost considerably more than smaller, heavier ones.
Suggestions
Despite the fact that airfreight shipments experience less loading and unloading than common carriers - which means there's less risk of damage while en route - baggage handling and airfreight handling are frighteningly similar. Items are sometimes thrown around like sacks of potatoes. So make sure your shipment is carefully packed to minimize damage.
Look for airfreight providers, common carriers, and van lines that provide free storage options. Lynden Expo Air, for example, provides 30 days of free storage at both inbound and outbound cities, Kolb says. Such a service can lower storage fees at your exhibit house, and in the case of consecutive same-city shows, it may completely eliminate one trip back to your exhibit house.
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Small-Package Carriers: Fast and Easy, but Prone to Problems
Almost everyone on the planet is fairly knowledgeable about small-package carriers such as FedEx, UPS, and DHL. And for the most part, these companies are the perfect solution for small shipments (those less than 150 pounds) that require speedy delivery. However, these small-package carriers are far from ideal for many exhibit shipments, particularly for those headed to the trade show floor.
"Almost all drayage providers charge a minimum fee on each parcel delivered to your exhibit," Beard says. "So when your small boxes are delivered to the convention center, they're likely dumped onto the dock along with hundreds of other small packages. Drayage personnel then randomly select parcels from the stacks, weigh each piece, create a bill of lading for it, add the cost to your material-handling bill, and then deliver it to your booth."
Thus, five boxes delivered to the convention center may be brought to your booth at five different times  throughout the day. And each time a box is delivered, you incur the minimum drayage charge for that box. Since the drayage minimum is often 200 to 300 pounds, and each hundred pounds averages $50 in drayage fees, those five boxes could cost you $100 to $150 each in drayage, for a grand total of up to $750. What's more, getting those boxes to your booth could take hours.
Small-package carriers accept myriad packing options as long as the shipment is reasonably protected. Pricing
is based on the distance traveled, dimensions, and weight, and delivery times include: priority overnight (next business morning), standard overnight (next business afternoon), first overnight (earliest next business morning), second business day, and third business day.
Benefits
Small-package carriers are reliable, and exhibit managers can easily track shipments using a simple tracking number. Plus, this method is commonplace, so there's little or no learning curve to use the service, and transportation brokers or forwarders need not be involved.
Concerns
Drayage costs associated with multiple small-package deliveries can quickly and easily bust your budget. It can also take hours for your packages to reach your exhibit, and separate pieces will likely arrive at different times.
Small-package carriers don't pick up shipments
from the convention-center docks where they
dropped the items off. Therefore, you must
take your packages to the convention-center business center, a nearby hotel
business center, or a shipping store for
return shipping after the show.
Suggestions
Rather than shipping small packages
to the convention center, ship them
to your hotel. While you'll likely incur
a fee for package delivery from the
hotel, it'll be far less than the drayage
fees you might incur by shipping them
directly to the show floor.
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Transportation Terminology
Not unlike our own industry, the transportation industry has its own unique terms and abbreviations. Here are definitions for some of the most troubling terms you'll need to know if you hope to speak and understand this sometimes dizzying dialect.
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Accessorial Charges - Extra fees for services or products beyond normal pickup and delivery, such as inside delivery, wait time, fuel surcharges, storage charges, etc.
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Air-ride Suspension -
A vehicle suspension system
that supports the load on
air-filled rubber bags rather than steel springs, ultimately providing a smoother ride.
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Blocking or Bracing - Typically used in van-line service, wood or metal supports used to secure freight in place when on a trailer. |
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| COFC - Standing for a Container On a Flat (rail) Car, this container is a box suitable for use on rail cars, trailer frames, and container ships. |
Consignee - The receiver.
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Consignor - The shipper.
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Cross-Docking - The process of moving goods between different trucks to consolidate loads without intermediate storage. Cross-docking is mainly used
by common carriers.
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| Density - The weight of an article per cubic foot. |
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Dunnage - A term that refers to materials used for protecting freight en route, such as cardboard, pallets, plywood, foam rubber, air bags, bubble wrap, styrofoam, etc.
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FTL - Full truckload. Historically, this is freight weighing 10,000 pounds or more. |
Hot Shot - The name used
to describe a shipment that needs expedited service.
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LTL - Less than truckload. Historically, this is freight that weighs less than 10,000 pounds.
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| Long Haul - A one-way trip via tractor-trailer that is 1,000 miles or more. |
Lumper - A person who assists a tractor-trailer operator
in the loading and unloading
of large shipments.
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Per Hundred Weight (CWT) -
A unit of weight measurement created by U.S. merchants in the late 1800s. A hundred weight is equal to 100 pounds. |
Short Haul - A one-way trip via tractor-trailer that is less than 1,000 miles. |
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