Trade show freight FAQ

It's one of the most important decisions you'll make. We often hear: "our company has a discounted rate with a major freight company, so we'll ship that way because it's cheaper."

Those discounts apply to volume product moving from a manufacturing facility to dealers and retailers. That's fine for bulk product. But trade show displays aren't built to be moved with the masses — they're expensive, well-crafted marketing tools that aren't designed to withstand being moved on and off trailers by forklift operators who don't know the value of the cargo.

We always recommend shipping trade show displays on air ride trailers, which significantly reduces wear, tear, and load shifting. Depending on the actual or dimensional weight of your display, you'll have several shipping options.

When shipping freight, a carrier will ask you to declare the value of that freight. With LTL shipping in particular, insurance is provided for a fee.

Trailer loads and dedicated partial loads are priced to include $25,000 per 25% volume, or $100,000 per trailer load.

Yes. If you're shipping a plasma screen television, tell your carrier upfront. Many carriers specifically exclude plasma TVs from coverage under their terms and conditions because of how fragile they are.

Plasma screens can still be covered under a Corporate Rider Policy.

A Corporate Rider Policy attaches to the same insurance policy that covers your computers and office equipment. Most storage facilities require one for stored display properties.

These policies usually carry a high deductible, which can be offset with declared value insurance. Contact your insurance provider for specifics.

Dimensional weight — or "dim weight" — is a measurement carriers use to ensure they're paid for the space a shipment occupies, not just what it weighs. It applies mostly to LTL shipments, and does not apply to dedicated partial loads or trailer loads.

A box of feathers and a box of bricks may be the same size, but the bricks weigh far more. Dim weight ensures carriers are paid for the volume a crate takes up. The formula (in inches) is Length × Width × Height, divided by a preset divisor: 194 domestic, 168 international.

For example, a crate measuring 101" × 50" × 53" equals 267,650 cubic inches. Divided by 194, that's a dim weight of 1,379 pounds. Three identical crates would be billed at 4,137 pounds — even if their actual combined weight is 2,908 pounds. That's 1,229 pounds of billable weight above actual.

Fuel prices rise and fall daily, and fuel is a major cost factor in trucking. Rather than adjusting rates every day, many carriers apply a fuel surcharge that reflects current fuel rates for that month, charged on top of the shipping cost.

FSCs have recently ranged between 70% and 90%. Loadify always quotes with fuel included.

The word comes from the railroad term "dray." When rail travel was common, freight and luggage often shipped in separate cars, were off-loaded at the destination city, and moved onward by horse-drawn dray cart.

Today the term refers to the material handling fees charged by a trade show's General Contractor. Drayage covers off-loading your freight, delivering it to your booth space, recovering and storing empty packaging, returning it, and reloading trucks after the show.

When a show ends, move-out runs on a fixed schedule set long in advance. You'll find it in the "Quick Facts" sheet in your exhibitor kit, along with a published carrier check-in time.

If your carrier fails to check in by that time, the General Contractor is forced to remove your property from the show floor to meet its own schedule with the facility. Because that move wasn't planned, it costs more.

Forced freight isn't only caused by a late carrier. If the exhibitor or their representative fails to turn in the outbound MHA at the service desk, or doesn't specify a carrier on it, the General Contractor may have to force the freight — either to their warehouse, or forwarded to the delivery address on the MHA. Either way, it's at the exhibitor's expense.

We work directly with your booth staff so everyone understands the importance of turning in a properly completed MHA at every event.

An MHA, or Material Handling Agreement, is a legal document supplied by the General Contractor and completed by the exhibitor or their representative.

It records the number of pieces shipping, the carrier, delivery address, declared value, and any special instructions — and it sets out the terms and conditions of the cartage.

A freight broker is a transport professional who acts as a liaison between shippers and shipping companies. Brokers represent multiple carriers and decide how best to move your freight based on the information you give them.

A good broker can be a valuable asset and help keep you inside your trade show shipping budget, with the goal of moving your freight in the safest, most time- and cost-efficient way possible.

Loadify is an asset-based company with its own fleet, and we also partner with several reputable asset-based carriers — giving you complete coverage, accountability, and reliability on time-sensitive trade show moves.

Common carriers are the backbone of the transit industry and move freight over road and rail. They're genuinely useful in the trade show arena when you're shipping product that doesn't need special handling or air ride trailers — particularly for shipping goods into an advance warehouse.

They may also offer better rates when freight moves "in the system" — meaning on their schedule, not yours. Insurance is limited, and they need extra transit time.

The main drawback: all common carriers move goods through a hub-and-spoke terminal system, so your materials are handled several times in transit. More handling means greater risk of damage. Loadify operates a load-and-go system — your goods travel on the same truck that picks them up and aren't handled again until they're passed to the delivery agent at destination.

Common carriers classify trade show materials as Class 125. They do offer targeted or time-critical delivery, but it's usually not discounted and costs more than standard LTL or partial service. Volume rates and exclusive use are competitively priced but generally don't move on air ride trailers, exposing freight to a rougher ride.

If you do send valuable property by common carrier, we strongly advise insuring it under your corporate insurance rider.

Parcel service is a legitimate alternative to consider — FedEx and UPS are effectively the common carriers of the parcel world. Their services are useful, but only marginally reliable for trade shows.

In our experience they're best used when the weight is low enough that regular freight shipping becomes cost-prohibitive. We recommend sending those packages in advance, addressed to a local representative. Check the material handling information sheet in your show book for per-package handling fees from the General Contractor — usually US$50 to US$100 per package.

The bigger drawback with both parcel and common carrier service is room for error. If something goes wrong, it's difficult to locate a shipment and correct it inside their systems. Items can miss their delivery window, or the show entirely. These services don't cover consequential damages, so unless items are permanently lost or damaged, you won't be compensated for a missed shipment beyond a credit for shipping charges.