How To Keep Your Freight Damage Free

Loading freight doesn’t have to be difficult when done correctly. If transporting freight is one of the main duties of your business, you need to learn the ins and outs of packing freight so as not to cause damage. There are several ways to avoid freight damage. Read on to learn how to keep your items damage-free when transported.

Tips for Preventing Freight Damage

Here are 7 ways to avoid freight damage:

  • Pack items properly – The most important way to avoid freight damage is to ensure that all items are packed properly. Avoid using packaging that contains tears, holes, or dents. Damaged boxes typically mean that the product is also damaged. When packing, remember to put packages together that are of the same pallet size.
  • Protect packages from impact – The package by itself is not able to protect what is inside fully. This is why it is important that you consider impact protection to keep your products safe no matter what happens during transport. Pay special attention to items that are fragile or ones that contain liquid.
  • Use adhesives – If you don’t seal your boxes and packages properly, it will cause damage to your products. Use strong tape when packing items. Consider using pressure-sensitive plastic, water-activated reinforced tape, or water-activated paper tape. These tapes are reliable due to their durability. This means, no matter what they are exposed to, they will hold up.
  • Load trailer correctly – You can’t just load a trailer anyway and expect your items to make it to their location safely. When you stack your boxes, you need to make sure that the weight is evenly distributed, so the pallets remain stable. As a rule of thumb, only stack one tower with boxes of the same dimensions. Don’t forget to add cardboard every few layers to help with weight distribution. This will also prevent boxes from being crushed.
  • Ensure all boxes are labeled – Labeling all of your boxes ensures that you are loading the trailer correctly. To prevent confusion, consider only using the lowest number of labels possible. But, labels should be simple to identify. Avoid putting any labels over tape or the closure of the box.
  • Use A 3PL – If your business uses LTL freight to ship your packages, you should carefully package every item. The reason for this is that LTL shipments are transported from one hub to the next, and they are constantly being loaded and unloaded way more than the standard A to B truckloads. Creating a partnership with 3PL means you will not have assistance, and your shipping experience will be extremely simple.
  • Come up with a plan – It is imperative that you create a detailed plan for your freight transportation practices. Your plan should ensure that you have great impact protection and additional methods. Your plan should discuss the methods you use to transport your products from your location to the next. It should discuss packaging and loading as well.

Leave a Reply