Crating Services & Shipment Preparation
Protect Your Freight with Custom Crating Solutions
Ensure your valuable shipments are safe and secure with FreightCenter's expert crating services. From fragile items to oversized equipment, our custom crating solutions are designed to safeguard your freight during transit. Start your stress-free shipping journey today!
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Award-Winning Service, Trusted by Shippers Everywhere!
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Crating and Freight Shipping Services
FreightCenter helps customers ship crated freight through a large network of reliable freight carriers. Whether you are shipping one fragile item, several palletized crates, or a large piece of equipment, we help you compare options and choose the freight service that fits your shipment.
Crated freight may move by LTL, full truckload, partial truckload, expedited, or specialized freight service depending on the item’s size, weight, value, and handling needs.
Crating services are often used for:
- Fragile or breakable items
- High-value goods
- Heavy machinery
- Furniture and antiques
- Electronics and medical equipment
- Trade show displays
- Auto parts and vehicle components
- Artwork, sculptures, and collectibles
- Business equipment
- Oversized or irregularly shaped freight
A well-built crate helps protect your freight, but the right freight service also matters. FreightCenter helps with both.
Crate Services & Shipment Preparation
Crating is considered the best way to protect many types of freight. Some shippers prefer to make their crates instead of having them made professionally. Customers shipping extremely fragile items with a high value, such as furniture, tend to have their containers made by a professional crating service. It can be very economical to pay to have your items crated by a company rather than buying all the supplies yourself and taking a day to build the crate.
Proper packing or crating will allow your shipment to withstand road vibrations and cross-docking during transit. If your item is fragile or has a high value, crating is the absolute best solution. Not only does crating provide the highest protection against damage and loss, but you also get the highest level of security to the strength of the crate. Strong build crates protect against damage and can stack items on top without damaging the contents inside. Crating can save money and possibly give a “stackable shipment” discount.
Trust a professional crating service like Sullivan Industrial Services
The short answer is yes! Please make sure you strap your crate to a pallet. Having your item palletized will allow you to move quickly by a forklift. Putting your container on a pallet may ensure your shipment gets on time. If your crate is on a pallet, the freight carrier can move it from one trailer to another.
| The Power of Palletizing Your Freight | |
|---|---|
| It’s nearly a universal truth that packaging your freight on a shipping pallet helps keep it safer and more secure during transit and handling. Here are a few important tips for palletizing your freight: | |
| Palletizing Tip | Why It Matters |
| Keep it contained. | If freight hangs over the edge of the pallet, damage may occur because there is no support for the freight while in transit. |
| Flat tops rock. | Be sure the top of the pallet has a flat surface. Otherwise, place single containers of freight on an outside corner, or ship them separately. |
| No love for interlocking. | The pallet loses strength when freight is arranged in an interlocked pattern. Arrange boxes in a uniform, lined-up fashion for maximum strength. |
| Birds of a feather flock together. | Different-sized boxes may not be uniform enough to achieve unit strength. Palletize boxes of similar shape together and ship other boxes separately or on their own pallet. |
| Flaps up before takeoff. | All box flaps and corrugations should face up, as they are the most compromised side of the box. |
| Cuddle your cargo. | Wrap your shipment with blankets or other cushioned material to provide an extra layer of protection and buffering. |
| No wiggle room. | Secure freight to the pallet with banding, shrink-wrap, or spray adhesive. |
As an added level of protection, some shippers choose to shrink-wrap by strapping them to a pallet and shrink-wrapping it. This step is only sometimes necessary; however, shrink-wrapping your crate allows you to secure documentation and small accessories to the container.
Does A Crate Cost More To Ship?
The extra weight of the crate and its size will affect your final shipping price. It is common for a wooden crate and pallet to ad 100lbs+ to a shipment. It is essential to make sure your BOL shows the packed and palleted weight and dimensions on it. Please include the crate and pallet weight or measurements to ensure your shipment gets on time. Building your crate is something you can do. If not, we recommend that a professional crating company crate your shipment. Check out our packaging and crating tips below.
What Questions Should You Ask a Crating Service for hire?
- What quality packaging materials do they use?
- Do they custom measure and build to your specific needs?
- Do they offer any kind of warranty or insurance?
- Can they build the crate on site or does it need to be shipped to you?What are the estimated costs involved?
- Is the crate rated for domestic or international shipping?
- What weight and dimensions is the crate going to add to my shipment costs?
Freight Packaging
Learn the best ways to save time and money when you package and ship freight.
Packing Guide to Prevent Freight Damage
Avoid costly damage to your shipment by protecting it against road and warehouse conditions. This guide will help you prevent damage and loss by properly packing, securing, and labeling your shipment.
Unless your freight requires a full truckload, your shipment will be grouped with other less-than-truckload (LTL) shipments and shipped by truck. An adequately packed shipment is your best protection against damage. An improperly packed or poorly addressed load may cause delays and unnecessary damage.
We recommend following advice on how to pack and crate to avoid these problems.
What Is a Handling Unit?
A handling unit is a bundle of freight that is individually identified and transported. What may have started as ten individually packaged boxes might now be ten boxes shrink-wrapped together onto one pallet. If you have ten individual boxes that are all going to the same location, it makes sense to bundle them onto a pallet and ship as one handling unit. Not only does this method save you money by only shipping once, it’ll also save you the stress of having to keep track of ten individual shipments.
Types of Packaging for Your Freight Shipment
In the freight industry, we’re all about making things faster, more innovative, and overall more efficient. If there’s a way for a shipment to be condensed or for a truckload capacity to be maximized to save you money and time, we’re all over that. Luckily, there are countless methods for making shipping more seamless, the first being packaging.
The way freight is packaged can make all the difference. It can change the shipping price, how it’s handled during transit, and even where it gets placed on a freight truck. Packaging your freight is a crucial step, not one on which you should cut corners. Various packaging options are available, and specific packaging options are best suited to the commodity you’re shipping.
Palletizing
A shipping pallet is an option when you have an oversized item that won’t fit within the confines of a crate. Additionally, shipping pallets is a wise choice when you have several smaller boxes to consolidate and shrink-wrap into one handling unit. Pro tip: Thoroughly bubble wrap your freight before shrink-wrapping it to the pallet. Pallets or skids come in standard sizes (48″ x 40″) that can easily be purchased, or ask your local grocer or large retailers if they can provide you with one.
Large items and multiple boxes should be adequately palletized. Make sure your boxes or crates do not overhang the pallet. When boxes or containers are stacked on a pallet, the boxes should be distributed evenly. Use heavy-duty plastic wrap to strap or secure your item(s) directly to the pallet if needed.
Be sure you have a loading dock or forklift at the pick-up and delivery location. If the pick-up and delivery locations do not have a dock, you must request a truck with a lift gate. There is an additional charge for added equipment options.
Crated freight needs the right shipping service, not just strong packaging. Whether you are shipping fragile items, high-value equipment, antiques, artwork, machinery, trade show materials, or oversized goods, FreightCenter helps you compare freight options and book the service that fits your shipment.
From LTL freight to white glove service, FreightCenter helps move crated shipments with the right carrier, equipment, and delivery support.
LTL freight is often a good fit for crated shipments that do not need a full truck. This can include one crated item, several palletized crates, or smaller commercial shipments that need strong protection during transit.
Drayage services help move freight short distances, often between ports, rail yards, warehouses, distribution centers, and final delivery points. For crated freight moving through intermodal or container shipping, drayage can be an important part of the overall shipping plan.
Some crated shipments are time-sensitive. Replacement equipment, event materials, trade show displays, urgent parts, or high-value freight may need faster pickup or delivery.
FreightCenter helps shippers compare expedited freight options so crated shipments can move quickly while still receiving the service and handling they need.
White glove freight may be a good choice when a crated shipment needs extra care beyond standard pickup and delivery. This can include fragile, valuable, oversized, or hard-to-handle items that may need inside delivery, special handling, unpacking, or placement.
Guaranteed competitive pricing every time you ship.
Crating Services FAQ
Q. What are crating services?
Crating services help protect freight by placing an item inside a strong wooden crate or protective structure before shipping. Crating is often used for fragile, valuable, heavy, oversized, or hard-to-handle items.
FreightCenter helps shippers compare freight options and book shipping for crated items once the shipment is packed, measured, and ready to move.
Q. Why should I use a crate for shipping freight?
Crates provide strong protection during freight shipping. They help shield items from damage caused by handling, stacking, shifting, or exposure during transit.
Crating is especially useful for heavy, fragile, or valuable items such as machinery, artwork, antiques, safes, electronics, furniture, and medical equipment.
Q. When should I crate my freight?
You should consider crating your freight when the item is fragile, high-value, oddly shaped, oversized, or difficult to secure on a pallet by itself. Crating is also helpful when the item may move through multiple handling points during transit.
If the item could crack, dent, scratch, shift, or break with standard packaging, a crate may be a safer option.
Q. Are crates reusable for multiple shipments?
Yes, many crates are reusable if they remain in good condition. Durable materials like hardwood or plastic can withstand multiple shipments, but you should inspect the crate after each use to ensure it’s still sturdy and safe.
Q. How do I secure my items inside the crate?
Use internal bracing, padding, or straps to prevent the items from shifting during transit. Fragile items may need additional protection, such as custom foam inserts or bubble wrap. Ensure that all contents are immobilized to avoid damage.
Q. Do I need a custom crate for my shipment?
Custom crates are recommended for irregularly shaped, delicate, or high-value items. A custom-designed crate ensures a secure fit and provides maximum protection for unique shipments, such as industrial equipment, large artwork, or sensitive electronics.
Q. Can I rent crates for shipping instead of buying them?
Yes, some shipping and logistics companies offer crate rental services. Renting can be a cost-effective option for one-time shipments or businesses that want to avoid storage and maintenance costs for reusable crates.
Q. What happens to the crate after delivery?
Crates can either be disposed of, returned to the sender, or repurposed for other uses. Some companies offer reverse logistics to retrieve reusable crates. Always check with your carrier or customer about their preferred process
Q. Should a crate be attached to a pallet?
In many cases, yes. A crate should be secured to a pallet or built with a forklift-ready base so the carrier can move it safely with a forklift or pallet jack.
The crate should not hang over the pallet edges, and the pallet should be strong enough to support the full packed weight.
Q. When should crated freight ship by truckload instead of LTL?
Truckload may be a better option when the crated shipment is large, heavy, high-value, time-sensitive, or takes up a lot of trailer space. It may also be useful when the shipper wants less handling during transit.
FreightCenter can help compare LTL, truckload, expedited, and specialized freight options based on the crated shipment’s size, weight, and delivery needs.
Q. Does crating increase freight shipping cost?
Crating can increase the shipping cost because it adds size and weight to the shipment. The final quote should include the item, crate, pallet, padding, and any added materials.
However, crating can also help reduce the risk of damage, delays, or rejected freight. Some NMFC freight classes are lower if your freight is crated. which means the rate can be lower. For fragile or valuable items, the added protection is often worth the extra cost.
Advantages of Using FreightCenter for Crated Freight Shipping
Experience Shipping Fragile and High-Value Freight
Crated shipments often need more care than standard freight. Whether you are shipping antiques, artwork, machinery, electronics, medical equipment, furniture, or other valuable items, FreightCenter helps match your shipment with freight options that fit the item’s size, weight, and handling needs. With decades of freight experience and access to a large carrier network, FreightCenter helps shippers move crated freight with more confidence from pickup to delivery.
Shipping Options That Fit Crated Freight
Not every crated shipment moves the same way. Some items can ship via LTL freight, while others may require truckload, expedited, white-glove, liftgate, or specialized freight services. FreightCenter helps you compare options based on your shipment’s final crated dimensions, weight, pickup location, delivery location, and service needs. If your crated item needs a liftgate, residential delivery, faster transit, or extra handling, we can help you include those details before booking.
Support From Freight Experts
Crating can help protect your shipment, but the shipping details still matter. FreightCenter’s team can help answer questions about freight class, liftgate service, residential delivery, carrier options, paperwork, and shipment tracking. Whether you are shipping one crated item or managing recurring crated freight, FreightCenter helps make the process easier before, during, and after pickup.
