Cargo

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Very small freight transporter - a cargo tricycle

Animals used to transport goods - Mules carrying slate
roof tiles in India in 1993

In economics, the words cargo or freight

refer in particular to goods or produce
being conveyed – generally for
commercial gain – by water, air or land.
Cargo was originally a shipload. Cargo
now covers all types of freight, including
that carried by rail, van, truck, or
intermodal container.[1] The term cargo is
also used in case of goods in the cold-
chain, because the perishable inventory is
always in transit towards a final end-use,
even when it is held in cold storage or
other similar climate-controlled facility.

Multi-modal container units, designed as

reusable carriers to facilitate unit load
handling of the goods contained, are also
referred to as cargo, specially by shipping
lines and logistics operators. Similarly,
aircraft ULD boxes are also documented
as cargo, with associated packing list of
the items contained within. When empty
containers are shipped each unit is
documented as a cargo and when goods
are stored within, the contents are termed
as containerised cargo.
Transportation types
Marine

Container ship at the Port of Helsinki in Finland

Seaport terminals handle a wide range of

maritime cargo.

Automobiles are handled at many ports

and are usually carried on specialized
roll-on/roll-off ships.
Break bulk cargo is typically material
stacked on pallets and lifted into and
out of the hold of a vessel by cranes on
the dock or aboard the ship itself. The
volume of break bulk cargo has declined
dramatically worldwide as
containerization has grown. One way to
secure break bulk and freight in
intermodal containers is by using
Dunnage Bags.
Bulk cargo, such as salt, oil, tallow, and
scrap metal, is usually defined as
commodities that are neither on pallets
nor in containers. Bulk cargoes are not
handled as individual pieces, the way
heavy-lift and project cargoes are.
Alumina, grain, gypsum, logs, and wood
chips, for instance, are bulk cargoes.
Neo-bulk cargo comprises individual
units that are counted as they are
loaded and unloaded, in contrast to bulk
cargo that is not counted, but that are
not containerized.[2]
Containers are the largest and fastest
growing cargo category at most ports
worldwide. Containerized cargo includes
everything from auto parts, machinery
and manufacturing components to
shoes and toys to frozen meat and
seafood.
 Project cargo and the heavy lift cargo
include items like manufacturing
equipment, air conditioners, factory
components, generators, wind turbines,
military equipment, and almost any
other oversized or overweight cargo
which is too big or too heavy to fit into a
container.

Air

Cargolux Boeing 747-400F with the nose loading door

open
Air cargo, commonly known as air freight,
is collected by firms from shippers and
delivered to customers. Aircraft were first
used for carrying mail as cargo in 1911.
Eventually manufacturers started
designing aircraft for other types of freight
as well.

There are many commercial aircraft

suitable for carrying cargo such as the
Boeing 747 and the bigger An‑124, which
was purposely built for easy conversion
into a cargo aircraft. Such large aircraft
employ quick-loading containers known as
unit load devices (ULDs), much like
containerized cargo ships. The ULDs are
located in the front section of the aircraft.

Most nations own and utilize large

numbers of military cargo aircraft such as
the C‑17 Globemaster III for logistical
needs.

Popular commercial aircraft transformed

to a cargo aircraft such as Saab 340A is
designed for high revenue and profitability
in short / medium haul operations.

Rail
P&O Nedlloyd inter-modal freight well car at Banbury
station. England, (2001)

Trains are capable of transporting a large

number of containers that come from
shipping ports. Trains are also used for the
transportation of water, cement, grain,
steel, wood and coal. They are used
because they can carry a large amount
and generally have a direct route to the
destination. Under the right
circumstances, freight transport by rail is
more economic and energy efficient than
by road, especially when carried in bulk or
over long distances.

The main disadvantage of rail freight is its

lack of flexibility. For this reason, rail has
lost much of the freight business to road
transport. Rail freight is often subject to
transshipment costs, since it must be
transferred from one mode of
transportation to another. Practices such
as containerization aim at minimizing
these costs. When transporting point-to-
point bulk loads such as cement or grain,
with specialised bulk handling facilities at
the rail sidings, rail mode of transport
remains the most convenient and
preferred option.

Many governments are currently trying to

encourage shippers to use trains more
often because of the environmental
benefits.

Road

Many firms, like Parcelforce, FedEx and

R+L Carriers transport all types of cargo by
road. Delivering everything from letters to
houses to cargo containers, these firms
offer fast, sometimes same-day, delivery.
A good example of road cargo is food, as
supermarkets require deliveries daily to
replenish their shelves with goods.
Retailers and manufacturers of all kinds
rely upon delivery trucks, be they full size
semi trucks or smaller delivery vans.
These smaller road haulage companies
constantly strive for the best routes and
prices to ship out their products.[3] Indeed,
the level of commercial freight transported
by smaller businesses is often a good
barometer of healthy economic
development as it is these types of
vehicles that move and transport literally
anything, including couriers transporting
parcel and mail.[4] You can see the
different types and weights of vehicles
that are used to move cargo around.[5]

Shipment categories
Freight is usually organized into various
shipment categories before it is
transported. An item's category is
determined by:

the type of item being carried. For

example, a kettle could fit into the
category 'household goods'.
how large the shipment is, in terms of
both item size and quantity.
 how long the item for delivery will be in
transit.

Shipments are typically categorized as

household goods, express, parcel, and
freight shipments:

Household goods (HHG) include

furniture, art and similar items.
Very small business or personal items
like envelopes are considered overnight
express or express letter shipments.
These shipments are rarely over a few
kilograms or pounds and almost always
travel in the carrier’s own packaging.
Express shipments almost always travel
some distance by air. An envelope may
go coast to coast in the United States
overnight or it may take several days,
depending on the service options and
prices chosen by the shipper.
Larger items like small boxes are
considered parcels or ground shipments.
These shipments are rarely over 50 kg
(110 lb), with no single piece of the
shipment weighing more than about
70 kg (154 lb). Parcel shipments are
always boxed, sometimes in the
shipper’s packaging and sometimes in
carrier-provided packaging. Service
levels are again variable but most
ground shipments will move about 800
to 1,100 km (497 to 684 mi) per day.
 Depending on the origin of the package,
it can travel from coast to coast in the
United States in about four days. Parcel
shipments rarely travel by air and
typically move via road and rail. Parcels
represent the majority of business-to-
consumer (B2C) shipments.
Beyond HHG, express, and parcel
shipments, movements are termed
freight shipments.

Less-than-truckload freight

Less than truckload (LTL) cargo is the first

category of freight shipment, which
represents the majority of freight
shipments and the majority of business-to-
business (B2B) shipments. LTL shipments
are also often referred to as motor freight
and the carriers involved are referred to as
motor carriers.

LTL shipments range from 50 to 7,000 kg

(110 to 15,430 lb), being less than 2.5 to
8.5 m (8 ft 2.4 in to 27 ft 10.6 in) the
majority of times. The average single piece
of LTL freight is 600 kg (1,323 lb) and the
size of a standard pallet. Long freight
and/or large freight are subject to extreme
length and cubic capacity surcharges.

Trailers used in LTL can range from 28 to

53 ft (8.53 to 16.15 m). The standard for
city deliveries is usually 48 ft (14.63 m). In
tight and residential environments the
28 ft (8.53 m) trailer is used the most.

The shipments are usually palletized,

stretch [shrink]-wrapped and packaged for
a mixed-freight environment. Unlike
express or parcel, LTL shippers must
provide their own packaging, as carriers do
not provide any packaging supplies or
assistance. However, circumstances may
require crating or other substantial
packaging.
Boeing 777 freighter of Emirates arrives at London
Heathrow Airport (2015).

Air freight

Air freight shipments are very similar to

LTL shipments in terms of size and
packaging requirements. However, air
freight or air cargo shipments typically
need to move at much faster speeds than
800 km or 497 mi per hour. Air shipments
may be booked directly with the carriers,
through brokers or with online
marketplace services. While shipments
move faster than standard LTL, air
shipments don’t always actually move by
air. In the US, there are certain restrictions
on shipments moving via air freight on
passenger aircraft. Shippers in the US
must be approved and be "known" in the
Known Shipper Management System
before their shipments can be tendered on
passenger aircraft.

Truckload freight

In the United States, shipments larger than

about 7,000 kg (15,432 lb) are typically
classified as truckload (TL) freight. This is
because it is more efficient and
economical for a large shipment to have
exclusive use of one larger trailer rather
than share space on a smaller LTL trailer.

By the Federal Bridge Gross Weight

Formula the total weight of a loaded truck
(tractor and trailer, 5-axle rig) cannot
exceed 80000 lbs in the United States. In
ordinary circumstances, long-haul
equipment will weigh about 15,000 kg
(33,069 lb), leaving about 20,000 kg
(44,092 lb) of freight capacity. Similarly a
load is limited to the space available in the
trailer, normally 48 ft (14.63 m) or 53 ft
(16.15 m) long, 2.6 m (102.4 in) wide,
2.7 m (8 ft 10.3 in) high and 13 ft 6 in or
4.11 m high over all.

While express, parcel and LTL shipments

are always intermingled with other
shipments on a single piece of equipment
and are typically reloaded across multiple
pieces of equipment during their transport,
TL shipments usually travel as the only
shipment on a trailer. In fact, TL shipments
usually deliver on exactly the same trailer
as they are picked up on.

Shipping costs
Often, an LTL shipper may realize savings
by utilizing a freight broker, online
marketplace or other intermediary, instead
of contracting directly with a trucking
company. Brokers can shop the
marketplace and obtain lower rates than
most smaller shippers can obtain directly.
In the LTL marketplace, intermediaries
typically receive 50% to 80% discounts
from published rates, where a small
shipper may only be offered a 5% to 30%
discount by the carrier. Intermediaries are
licensed by the DOT and have
requirements to provide proof of
insurance.

Truckload (TL) carriers usually charge a

rate per kilometre or mile. The rate varies
depending on the distance, geographic
location of the delivery, items being
shipped, equipment type required, and
service times required. TL shipments
usually receive a variety of surcharges very
similar to those described for LTL
shipments above. In the TL market, there
are thousands more small carriers than in
the LTL market. Therefore, the use of
transportation intermediaries or brokers is
extremely common.

Another cost-saving method is facilitating

pickups or deliveries at the carrier’s
terminals. By doing this, shippers avoid
any accessorial fees that might normally
be charged for liftgate, residential
pickup/delivery, inside pickup/delivery, or
notifications/appointments. Carriers or
intermediaries can provide shippers with
the address and phone number for the
closest shipping terminal to the origin
and/or destination.

Shipping experts optimize their service

and costs by sampling rates from several
carriers, brokers and online marketplaces.
When obtaining rates from different
providers, shippers may find a wide range
in the pricing offered. If a shipper in the
United States uses a broker, freight
forwarder or other transportation
intermediary, it is common for the shipper
to receive a copy of the carrier's Federal
Operating Authority.[6] Freight brokers and
intermediaries are also required by Federal
Law to be licensed by the Federal Highway
Administration. Experienced shippers
avoid unlicensed brokers and forwarders
because if brokers are working outside the
law by not having a Federal Operating
License, the shipper has no protection in
the event of a problem. Also, shippers
normally ask for a copy of the broker's
insurance certificate and any specific
insurance that applies to the shipment.
Overall, shipping costs have fallen over the
past decades. A further drop in shipping
costs in the future might be realized
through the application of improved 3D
printing technologies.[7] 

Security concerns
Governments are very concerned with the
shipment of cargo, as it may bring security
risks to a country. Therefore, many
governments have enacted rules and
regulations, administered by a customs
agency, to the handling of cargo to
minimize risks of terrorism and other
crime. Governments are particularly
concerned with cargo entering through a
country's borders.

The United States has been one of the

leaders in securing cargo. They see cargo
as a concern to national security. After the
terrorist attacks of September 11th, the
security of this magnitude of cargo has
become highlighted on the over 6 million
cargo containers enter the United States
ports each year.[8] The latest US
Government response to this threat is the
CSI: Container Security Initiative. CSI is a
program intended to help increase security
for containerised cargo shipped to the
United States from around the world.[9]
Europe is also focusing on this issue, with
a number of EU-funded projects underway.

Stabilization
There are many different ways and
materials available to stabilize and secure
cargo in various modes of transport.
Conventional load securing methods and
materials such as steel strapping and
plastic/wood blocking & bracing have
been used for decades and are still widely
used. Present load securing methods offer
several other options including polyester
strapping and lashing, synthetic webbings
and dunnage bags, also known as air bags
or inflatable bags.

Practical advise on stabilization is given in

the International Guidelines on Safe Load
Securing for Road Transport.[10]
 Application in container

Polyester strapping and dunnage bag

 Polyester lashing

Historical

Amphorae designed for marine cargo, taken from

shipwrecks near Bodrum, belonging to the Bronze Age.
The rack and roping device to illustrate how the cargo
The rack and roping device to illustrate how the cargo
might have been kept from shifting

See also
Cargo airline
Cargo sampling
Cargo scanning
Counter-to-counter package
Delivery
DAT Solutions (a.k.a. Dial-a-truck)
Freight company
Freight Transport Association
Goods
Goods train
 Owner–Operator Independent Drivers
Association
Products
Standard Carrier Alpha Codes
Document automation in management

References
1. Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Cargo"  .
Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.).
Cambridge University Press.
2. CambridgeSystematics 1998, pp. 79.
3. "An example of a British commercial
freight forwarding agency" .
Freightlink. Archived from the original
 on 10 February 2014. Retrieved
12 January 2014.
4. "Transportation is a crucial driver of
economic growth and poverty
reduction" . The World Bank. Archived
from the original on 30 June 2013.
Retrieved 14 April 2013.
5. "Archived copy" . Archived from the
original on 2015-02-10. Retrieved
2015-01-29.
6. Federal Motor Carrier Safety
Administration Archived 2013-02-22
at the Wayback Machine
7. Durach, Christian F.; Kurpjuweit, Stefan;
Wagner, Stephan M. (2017-09-25).
 "The impact of additive manufacturing
on supply chains" . International
Journal of Physical Distribution &
Logistics Management. 47 (10): 954–
971. doi:10.1108/ijpdlm-11-2016-
0332 . ISSN 0960-0035 .
8. Murray Unveils First-in-the-Nation Port
Security Demonstration Archived
2007-05-31 at the Wayback Machine
9. CSI: Container Security Initiative
Archived October 10, 2006, at the
Wayback Machine
10. International Guidelines on Safe Load
Securing for Road Transport
 Archived 2015-07-06 at the Wayback
Machine

Reference bibliography

Cambridge Systematics (1998).

Multimodal corridor and capacity
analysis manual. Transportation
Research Board. ISBN 978-0-309-
06072-1.

External links
The dictionary definition of cargo at
Wiktionary
Media related to Freight at Wikimedia
Commons
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