Industrial Freight

Industrial freight encompasses the movement of raw materials, components, heavy equipment, fabricated products, and other goods associated with manufacturing, construction, energy, and industrial sectors. These shipments often involve characteristics that set them apart from consumer goods freight: extreme weights, non-standard dimensions, specialized loading and securing requirements, and equipment needs that go beyond standard dry van or reefer trailers.

Common industrial freight categories include steel and metal products, machinery and heavy equipment, building materials, chemicals, paper and packaging materials, and manufactured components moving between production facilities. Transportation modes span FTL dry van for lighter manufactured goods, flatbed for oversized or non-stackable items, and specialized trailers for hazardous materials or equipment requiring specific securement. Many industrial shipments also require accurate hazmat documentation, which adds a compliance layer to every load.

The logistics challenges in industrial freight center on load planning accuracy and cost control. Improperly classified shipments – wrong weight, wrong freight class, wrong dimensions – trigger re-class fees on LTL shipments and can create safety issues on FTL loads. Carriers charge accessorial fees for liftgate service, inside delivery, limited access locations, and equipment detention, and these charges add up quickly when not managed proactively.

Industrial shippers managing high volumes across multiple facilities benefit from systematic load optimization – using product-level data to build accurate, compliant loads – and from freight audit processes that catch billing discrepancies before they become accepted costs.