Glossary of Commonly Used Freight and Shipping Terms
Assessorial Charges These are components of freight costs that the freight carriers have added on to their base freight rates in recent years. Examples of these charges include:
- Freight Surcharge
- Dimensional Surcharge
- Delivery to Residence
- Address Corrections
- Weight Errors
- Insurance
Base Shipping Rate (also referred to as Base Rate) The base freight expenses that applies to an individual shipment
Bill of Lading A document that must accompany each shipment that defines the contents of the shipment
Business Rules The internal business rules that have been defined by each company that determine freight carriers and shipping modes. These rules have a direct impact on freight expenses
Carrier Agreement The written agreement with a specific freight carrier that determines the prices and discounts, by shipping mode and service level, that applies for the term of the agreements. Most agreements apply to 1, 2, or 3 years.
Claim A dispute on the freight expense incurred on an individual shipment, or a request for reimbursement for products damaged during he shipping process
Consignee A company that receives an individual shipment and acknowledges the receipt in writing
FOB/Prepaid The identification of which party is responsible for paying the freight expense. FOB refers to Freight on Board and indicates that the purchaser of the products is responsible for paying the freight expense, and Prepaid indicates that the supplier is responsible for paying for the freight expenses
Freight Audit The process of reviewing the current procedures for managing both inbound freight expenses and outbound freight expenses
Freight Broker A company that serves as a sales agent for a freight carrier
Freight Carrier (also referred to as Carrier) A company that provides any type of shipping service
Freight Forwarder A company that arranges for products to be shipped by international freight carriers, and pickups or delivers the product from either the company shipping the products, or from the company receiving the products
Freight Invoice Approval The process of approving invoices received from Freight Carriers
Freight Policy The internal policy defined by an individual company that defines when specific shipping modes, specific freight carriers, and specific service levels should be utilized. It can also define what personnel has the authority to make decisions that impact freight expenses
Freight Spend The total amount of expenses incurred for freight in a given time period, typically a year.
Imports products that are purchased internationally
Inbound Freight The freight expense that is incurred on products purchased from vendors, typically related to incoming purchase orders
Outbound Freight The freight expense that is incurred on products shipped to customer, typically related to outbound customer orders
Packing List A document that accompanies each shipment and contains the contents of each shipment
Returns Shipments that are returned to the supplier
Service Levels The level of service options that are available for each shipping mode. As an example, the options that typically available for parcel shipments are 1) next day, 2) second day, Note these options can vary by Freight Carrier.
Ship Via The individual Freight Carrier to be used on an individual shipment
Shipper The Freight Carrier used on an individual shipment
Shipping and Handling Charge The amount on an individual invoice that identifies the freight expense, provided by a freight carrier, plus an allowance for the internal handling expenses.
Shipping Charge The amount on an individual invoice that identifies the amount of freight expense, provided by a freight carrier, that is to be paid by the company receiving the products.
Shipping Charge Correction A charge that appears on the freight carriers invoice, received after the actual shipment occurs, that identifies a correction to the amount of the freight expense.
Shipping Container The package or container that the products are typically shipped in
Shipping Label The bar coded label that must used on each shipping container.
Shipping Modes These are the modes of shipping that most companies use for shipping their products. Common modes used include:
- Small Parcel the mode used to ship product shipped in individual packages
- Truck Load the mode used to ship products in full truck loads
- LTL the mode used to ship products in less than full trucks loads, typically in pallets - what is FAK?
- International Export the mode used to ship products internationally
- International Import the mode used to purchase products internationally
- Trade Shows the mode used to ship displays and sales materials to trade shows
- US Mail the mode used to ship via the
- Air the mode used to ship via airplane
- Rail the mode used to ship via the railroad
Shipping Routing (also referred to as Routing) The specific route determined by the freight carrier for the shipment of san individual shipment
Shipping System The computer system used to facilitate the shipping process. Typical functions performed are generation of bar coded shipping labels, generation of bills of lading, freight carrier selection, and freight cost calculation. They can also generate the required customs paperwork required for international shipments. These systems can be purchased from either individual freight carriers, if the company uses a single freight carrier for shipping their products, or from third party suppliers, if a company uses multiple freight carriers for shipping their products. These computer systems are separate systems from the companys ERP systems, and may or may not be electronically interfaced with the ERP system.
Shipping Zones Predetermined sections of the
Strategic Sourcing Initiative The process of documenting a companies total shipping requirements and soliciting formal quotations from the applicable freight carriers
Tracking Number A unique number assigned by a freight carrier to an individual shipment that allows the end consumer to inquirer about the status of the shipment anytime during the shipping process.