Logistics glossary
The terms most often encountered in quotes, contracts and documents.
Full Truck Load: transport in which the whole vehicle is reserved for a single shipper.
Less than Truck Load: transport in which the cargo of several shippers is combined in the same vehicle.
Loading Metre: the length the cargo takes up in the vehicle's load space; used in LTL pricing.
Units of measure for 20 and 40 ft containers; 1 FEU = 2 TEU.
Full / Less than Container Load: sea transport of a whole container or part of one.
Bill of Lading: the sea consignment document; a contract of carriage, a receipt and a document of title.
Air Waybill: the air consignment note.
The consignment note and related contract used in international road transport.
A guaranteed document for the transit customs procedure.
A logistics intermediary that manages the organisation of transport.
A sea carrier that offers container transport without owning a vessel of its own.
Combining small loads from different shippers into a single shipment.
Carriage of cargo from one country to another through one or more countries in between.
Completion of export/import procedures for the goods at customs.
Estimated Time of Arrival / Departure: expected arrival / departure time.
The deadline for accepting a container or cargo onto a vessel/aircraft.
A charge paid when a container stays at the port/terminal beyond the free time.
A charge paid when a container is used outside the port beyond the free time.
Roll-on/Roll-off: transport in which vehicles drive on and off the vessel on their own wheels.
A swappable load unit, detachable from road vehicles, used on rail and road.
Carriage of the same load unit by more than one mode without handling the cargo itself.
Carriage using more than one mode under a single contract and a single responsible operator.
The customs tariff classification code of the goods.
The weight used as the basis for charging, calculated from the volume of the cargo.
Transferring cargo from an incoming vehicle to an outgoing vehicle without storing it.
The final leg of delivery, in which cargo reaches the recipient from the last distribution point.