Today, the logistics business is required to try to be lightning-fast as businesses feel the pressure of an “I want it now” consumer. In addition to the need for speed, shippers must be constantly mindful of employing risk reduction practices. Making optimal use of time and resources when it comes to the transportation of goods is imperative, and full truckload shipping solves this problem for many businesses.
Gone are the days when shippers could simply hold on to freight in one location until they received enough orders to make a full truckload to a specific destination. The dawn of Amazon Prime’s Same-Day and Next-Day services makes it imperative for shippers to accommodate a shift in the modern consumer mindset—a demand for nearly immediate delivery options. Full truckload freight allocation is one cost-effect solution to meet customer’s accelerating delivery expectations.
Full Truckload Allocation Explained
Full truckload allocation, also known as FTL, refers to a mode of transport where shippers have enough products going to a specific destination to completely fill a truck. A shipment can also be classified as FTL if a manufacturer or retailer chooses to dedicate an entire truck to the transport of a partial cargo load. Full truckload is often the choice when companies have more than 10,000 pounds of product and ten or more pallets to ship.
Perils of Poor Truckload Allocation
When full truckload is used to transport volumes of sensitive goods, schedules must be properly planned from point A to Z. If a truck does not have enough room to accommodate all the cargo, there can be serious repercussions. If the truck doesn’t meet proper temperature control or safety specs, there can be serious repercussions. Problems such as exorbitant and unanticipated shipping costs and customer frustration can ruin an otherwise great week.
Another problem related to poor truckload allocation is having too much space. A truck that is only partially full lends itself to the possibility of unsecured products being jostled around and damaged. Plus, paying for unused truck space equals wasted labor and fuel costs.
FTL transport can be complicated and may come with annoyances. When companies opt to navigate the terrain in-house rather than working with a qualified 3PL, the result can be a failure to negotiate a good rate with a qualified carrier. Shippers who are not in tune with FTL trends are less likely to be conscious of higher-than-typical rate charges or billing details that are askew. Partnering with a competent 3PL will help you to address these challenges. An additional cost is the time it takes your team to source a truckload carrier. The process usually entails many emails and phone calls doing tactical work instead of spending time on more high value initiatives in the company.
Benefits of Full Truckload Allocation
There are many benefits of utilizing full truckload freight allocation. Generally, FTL will provide faster delivery of goods, with fewer risks, and with better shipping rates. Let’s discuss just a few of the benefits:
Faster Delivery
Less Than Truckload (LTL) is a means of transport that allows carriers to pay for just the amount of space they use for a given shipment, but transit times are unreliable. Compared to LTL, full truckload transport provides a quicker means of delivering goods because the shipment moves as soon as it is loaded as opposed to waiting for other freight to be loaded on the truck. An entire truck delivering to just one area means no stops along the way.
Safer for Sensitive Cargo
Transporting goods requires lots of time and effort. Merchants of sensitive goods such as high value equipment or pharma product maximize FTL benefits because there is less handling of the cargo inside the trailer; it is dedicated to them. With fewer points of contact, the risk of damage to these products is lessened.
More Cost Effective
If a shipment has enough freight to fill an entire truck, and the shipment has a single place of origin and destination, FTL transport will be less expensive than LTL. Because of their non-stop transit to the final destination, full truckload freights require less gas, no stop off fees, and less wear and tear on the truck, all resulting in reduced shipping costs.
Deciding whether to choose LTL or FTL can be tricky. Contact Langham Logistics for a wide range of logistics solutions including proper truckload allocation. We can help you to cost-effectively get your product where it needs to go, on-time and damage free.
