Shipping Cost, Freight and Landed Cost for Industrial Cargo

Ex-works price is not a cost

An ex-works or FOB price is an input. The number a project is actually charged is the landed cost: goods value plus freight, insurance, duty, clearance, port charges, inland haulage and any demurrage incurred. On drummed chemicals shipped from a distant origin, that difference regularly runs to a quarter of the goods value and reverses which supplier is cheapest.

Estimate ocean freight with the Tradloc Shipping Cost Calculator to establish the transport line, then calculate import duty and total landed cost on Tradloc to complete the build-up before any comparison is made.

Volume, weight and container utilisation

Freight is charged on whichever of weight or volume is greater, so packing configuration is a cost decision. Drummed liquids weight-out before they volume-out; bagged solids often do the reverse. Plan cargo volume with Tradloc CBM and container loading calculators to check whether the shipment fits a 20ft, 40ft or high-cube unit efficiently, and whether consolidating two orders removes a container from the bill.

• —Calculate CBM from actual package dimensions, not nominal product volume
• —Check pallet configuration against container internal dimensions
• —Compare a full container against LCL at the actual volume — the crossover is lower than most assume
• —Consider consolidating adjacent orders into one sailing

Classification, duty and clearance

The HS code sets the duty rate and determines whether a shipment moves or is detained. Misclassification of oilfield chemicals is a routine cause of port hold, demurrage and retrospective assessment. Find HS codes and estimate customs clearance with Tradloc before booking, and treat the code as part of the purchase specification rather than something the forwarder resolves at destination.

Documentation follows the same logic: the commercial invoice, packing list, certificate of origin and hazard documentation must agree with each other and with the code declared. Where the buyer needs a pre-shipment document to open a letter of credit, issue a proforma invoice for advance payment with DocMak, and print GHS chemical, safety and shipping labels with DocMak so the packages match the paperwork on arrival.

Transit time is a cost line

Compare freight rates and transit times on Tradloc together. A rate saving of a few hundred dollars against a two-week longer transit is a poor trade when a rig is waiting — the day rate dominates the freight line by an order of magnitude. Campaign logistics should be planned back from the operational schedule, with the expediting decision priced explicitly rather than taken under pressure.