What is LTL?
LTL is short for Less than Truck Load, a commonly used term in the shipping industry. When you ship items LTL, your order shares space with other orders in the truck, which is what differentiates LTL from FTL. Full Truck Load (FTL) shipping means that your items fill the truck’s entire cargo area and that you have effectively rented the entire truck yourself. When LTL shipping is used to move inventory long distances, it frequently relies on networks of carriers to get the job done. Bonded Service offers LTL shipping both locally and across the country with our in house fleet and national partnerships.
How LTL Works
When we ship LTL, we consolidate different freight from different shippers into one cargo trailer based on common destinations. This allows each individual sender to save money on shipping costs by basically sharing the cost of renting the truck and trailer with other individuals. Combining LTL shipping with our Order Fulfillment services means that we will even take care of the packing for you, and with our Inventory Management services we can also handle storage, tracking and warehousing of your business’ products.
LTL Carrier Networks
For pickups and deliveries across the southeast we use our own fleet of trucks, which is over 25 strong. But when shipping items across the country we tap into our network of carriers to get you discounts as well as the best service. According to a 2011 Purdue University study, LTL carrier to carrier collaboration has become a highly effective way to ship goods due to advances in technology that make communication and tracking easy.
Another study, this one from France, found that these technological advances, including GPS, smartphones and the internet, have actually made LTL shipping more viable than traditional FTL shipping for most long range freight shipping needs. LTL shipping now offers customers flexibility and a low price point as well as the means to completely track and follow their order.
Is LTL for me?
Whether you are a retail or commercial products manufacturer or an importer of products that need to be shipped by truck, LTL is the way to go in most cases. The only exception would be if your inventory quantity was so high that you could fill an entire cargo bay with each order consistently, in which case FTL shipping might offer you a better solution. To find out more about our LTL shipping options and how it can solve your needs, call Bonded Service today at (404) 349-1466.