ARE YOU PAYING TOO MUCH FOR FREIGHT?

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Understanding freight classes does not need to be a complex and time-consuming thing.  In fact, we here at FreightClasses.net feel it is our duty to provide a walk-through to help everyone understand the fundamentals of freight classification.  Read more here.

You’ve probably arrived at this website because, either you are currently selling products, or, you are planning to do so in the near future.  For this purpose, you may have arrived already aware of the importance of understanding freight classes.

(for either Shipping Classification, or Freight Classification, you’re at the right place).

 

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WHAT ARE FREIGHT CLASSES?

 

Shipping can be costly and if your company is invested in shipping freight, you likely want to understand how freight shipping is calculated.  Carriers are free to develop their own rates according to classification methods of their own choosing, and they will either have standardized shipping rates or they will negotiate rates with customers.  Many companies look to the National Motor Freight Transportation Association (NMFTA Inc.), and the classification system, National Motor Freight Classification (NMFC) set forth by the Commodity Classification Standards Board (CCSB), an autonomous committee governed by a group of seven members, each full-time employees of the NMFTA.  The NMFC provides a comparison of products moving by motor carrier in interstate, intrastate and foreign commerce.

 

Carriers are not required to fix their rates according to the NMFC, though they often do, as hundreds of carriers belong to the NMFTA, so if regularly ship freight and wonder how freight is often calculated, understanding this particular freight classification system is likely useful.  The NMFTA members consist of freight carriers and transportation businesses operating in interstate, intrastate and foreign commerce.

 

If, upon receiving a freight quote, you discover your carrier is determining freight classes with the help of freight classification standards set by the CCSB, you can use information found at this website to understand more specifically how your freight shipping quote was determined. 

 

It is important to understand that neither the CCSB nor the NMFTA suggest monetary rates for any shipment.  They only suggest a specific method by which freight carriers can classify freight according to varying physical attributes.  Carriers that determine their freight classification standards according to standards set by the CCSB determine their monetary shipping values by implementing a unique monetary scale created by the carrier, as seen fit by the carrier alone.

 

 

You, the seller, wants to know just how are freight carriers using this tool?

 

 

And you want to be able to project these costs!

 

 

You have found the right website. 

Welcome to FreightClasses.net –

 

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A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF FREIGHT CLASSES

 

 

You've learned about the National Motor Freight Traffic Association and its subsidiary National Motor Freight Classification standardization tool, which many carriers choose as a method for classifying freight and for determining freight quotes.  There are other methods for determining the cost of freight shipping, though the commonly used NMFC standards explained on this website will help you understand the NMFC guidelines and the methods by which many carriers classify shipments.

 

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WHAT KIND OF PRODUCT ARE YOU SHIPPING?

 

The NMFC arranges commodities into eighteen classes, each with a rating on a scale from 50 to 500.

 

FreightClass.net can help you determine which class your shipments belong to. 

 

Are you shipping in bulk?  What size are your products?

 

The NMFC helps us calculate your freight quote by means of a comparison of goods depending on their movement through foreign, interstate, and intrastate commercial channels.

 

Providing both carriers and shippers with standards by which to assign their own pricing evaluation, the NMFC simplifies the comparative evaluation of goods through its classification system.

 

Imagine the complexity of comparing a shipment of cheap, bulky tin garbage cans that weigh little with another shipment of, say, gold bullion: the comparative cost of shipping each by water, air, or road (your choice) is made relatively complex. For this reason, the NMFC offers guidelines for defining and quantifying the comparative nuances of the shipping industry.

 

Defining your freight as a certain class depends on its shipping characteristics and thus its position among the varying definitions provided by the NMFC – this much information helps freightclasses.net determine your freight classification.

 

Lucky for you, the NMFC classification standards are simple, and easily applied when designing your freight quote: lucky for you because freightclasses.net uses these standards when providing you with your personalized freight quote.

 

 

 

 

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WHAT IS MEASURED?

 

As previously stated, what is measured is the difficulty of shipping the goods (I.e. transportability of those goods.)

 

Key terms:

1. Density;

2. Stowability, which includes excessive weight or excessive length;

3. Ease or difficulty of handling, which includes special care or attention necessary to handle the goods; and

4. Liability, which includes value per pound, susceptibility to theft, liability to damage, perishability, propensity to damage other commodities with which transported and propensity to spontaneous combustion or explosion.

 

A description of these four characteristics will help aid your quote provider with the necessary information to determine your shipping class.

 

The NMFC assigns a number from 50 to 500 based on an evaluation of these four characteristics. There is no need for the shipper to be aware of this number, only that the type of his or her shipment will affect the price of the shipment.  As your freight class increases, the price of shipping in bulk significantly decreases.

 

The NMFC publication describes the nature of these classifications to a much fuller depth, explaining it all, down to the formulas used to calculate these costs.  The NMFC publication is referred to by both carrier and quote provider in order to assess the varying complexities of shipping your goods, helping each provide their quote. 

 

 

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