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International freight is a chain of decisions: what equipment to use, how to prepare the goods, which service fits the shipment and what needs to happen at each port. A choice that looks minor on a quote can affect handling, transit time, clearance and the final cost of getting cargo to its destination.
This publication brings the moving parts together for Australian businesses, importers, exporters and supply chain teams. We explain container types and capacity, ocean freight options, cargo preparation, specialist equipment and the documents that help shipments move through the transport chain.
Routes across the Pacific bring their own practical considerations. Businesses arranging shipping cargo to Lae, for example, should consider the destination port, local handling arrangements and final delivery requirements before the cargo is packed and booked.
Two essential starting points: understand the equipment carrying the goods, then understand how ocean freight moves that cargo from origin to destination.
Compare standard, high-cube, refrigerated and specialist containers. Understand internal dimensions, usable capacity, payload and the type of cargo each unit is designed to carry.
Read the container guide
Follow the ocean freight process, compare full-container and shared-container services, and understand the costs, documents, port stages and decisions behind a sea shipment.
Read the ocean freight guideGo straight to the part of the shipment you need to understand, from choosing a container to planning the sea leg and preparing cargo for transit.
Practical guides for planning shipments, choosing the right service and avoiding preventable problems during packing, handling and delivery.
Compare the dimensions and usable volume of the three common container sizes, and weigh cargo density, loading requirements and inland transport limits before booking.
Understand the main stages between supplier collection, export handling, vessel departure, arrival, clearance and final delivery.
Compare a dedicated container with shared-container shipping, including chargeable volume, handling, transit time and total landed cost.
Make sense of cut-off dates, estimated departure and arrival times, transhipments, tracking events and schedule changes.
Learn how the origin and destination ports appear in shipping documents, and why the distinction matters for routing, charges and delivery.
See how separate consignments are combined into a shared load, what happens at a container freight station and when consolidation can make sense.
Understand what affects sailing duration, including port calls, transhipment, congestion, service frequency and inland transport.
Practical guidance on palletising, weight distribution, bracing, blocking, moisture protection and securing goods for the journey.
Compare loose bulk commodities, individually handled break-bulk goods and containerised freight by cargo characteristics and handling needs.
Plan temperature settings, pre-trip checks, cargo preparation, airflow, monitoring and contingency arrangements for chilled and frozen goods.
Explore out-of-gauge planning, cargo dimensions, lifting points, route surveys, permits, specialist equipment and project coordination.
Understand the nine IMDG hazard classes, shipper responsibilities, classification, packaging, marks, labels and transport documentation.
Shipping can look straightforward until a consignment has to fit a particular container, meet a vessel cut-off, pass an inspection or reach a destination beyond the port. The purpose of this publication is to make those operational details easier to understand.
Our coverage brings together container equipment, ocean freight, cargo handling and specialist transport. It is written for people who need more than a definition: readers should come away knowing what to check, which questions to ask their carrier or freight forwarder, and where a shipment may need extra planning.
Good freight guidance needs to distinguish between a container's nominal dimensions, its rated payload, the verified gross mass of a packed unit and the mass a vehicle can legally carry on a particular road. Those figures serve different purposes and should not be treated as interchangeable.
For Australian imports, cleanliness, packing materials and biosecurity conditions can affect inspection, treatment, release time and cost. For inland transport, heavy vehicle mass and dimension requirements must be checked against the vehicle configuration and applicable road access conditions.
We aim to explain the general process in plain language, identify where requirements vary and direct readers to primary sources for rules that should be checked before dispatch. Carrier specifications, port procedures and regulatory conditions can change, so shipment-specific details should always be confirmed with the relevant operator or authority.
Australian biosecurity guidance for preparing imports, including container cleanliness and packing declarations.
DAFF: Preparing goods for importCurrent Australian information on heavy vehicle mass and dimension requirements for the road leg of a freight movement.
NHVR: Mass and dimensionThe information on this site is general guidance, not a substitute for shipment-specific advice, current carrier instructions, customs advice or regulatory requirements. Always confirm the conditions that apply to your cargo, route and date of transport.
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