Shipping Guides, Tools and Checklists
Guides to the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, equipment and pallet tools, and the checklists shippers use before they request a quote, in one place.
Port Guides (LA/Long Beach)
Terminals, depots, port data, the overweight corridor, and the import and export steps at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.
LA/Long Beach Terminal Map
The container terminals at both ports, with operators, addresses and the ocean carriers at each
Open LA/Long Beach Terminal MapContainer Depots
Off-dock container depots and empty return yards near LA/Long Beach
Open Container DepotsPort Facts and Figures
Monthly container volumes and import container dwell times at both ports
Open Port Facts and FiguresOverweight Container Corridor
Approved streets, permits and the 95,000 lb limit around the ports, with a route map
Open Overweight Container CorridorImport Checklist
Vessel arrival to empty return: releases, holds, free time, appointments and port fees
Open Import ChecklistExport Checklist
Booking to gate-in: the empty, the load, the VGM, the return window and cutoffs
Open Export Checklist
Tools and Calculators
Plan the equipment and get the details together before you request a quote.
How Many Pallets Fit
Pallet counts for trailers, containers, box trucks and Sprinter vans, with stacking checks
Open How Many Pallets FitLoad Planner
Checks weight, then floor space, then height and doors, then docks, and shows the smallest vehicle that fits, the next size up and whether you need a liftgate.
Open Load PlannerVGM Calculator
Work out the Verified Gross Mass (VGM) of an export container
Open VGM CalculatorPer Diem Dispute Checklist
Steps, evidence and stated deadlines from out-gate to a resolved per diem invoice
Open Per Diem Dispute ChecklistQuote Checklists
What to have ready for a quote, by service
Open Quote Checklists
Equipment
Sizes, door openings, pallet counts and payloads for the equipment we book.
Equipment Guide
Sprinter van, box truck, trailer and container sizes and payloads, compared side by side
Open Equipment GuideContainer Chassis Types
20, 40, 45 and 53 ft and specialty chassis, with true-to-scale drawings
Open Container Chassis TypesContainer Weight Limits
Steer, drive and rear axle limits, which chassis to use and how sliding the axles keeps a load legal
Open Container Weight Limits
Learn and Compare
Plain-language explanations of freight terms and decisions.
Transload vs Drayage
When to deliver an import container intact and when to transload it into 53 ft trailers
Open Transload vs DrayageDemurrage, Detention and Per Diem
Who bills each charge at LA/Long Beach, how free time works and what a federal invoice must show
Open Demurrage, Detention and Per DiemPer Diem and Demurrage Charges Decoded
Which bill is which, what the UIIA sets, and what federal billing rules still require
Open Per Diem and Demurrage Charges DecodedFreight Glossary
Plain-language definitions of drayage, transload, truckload and broker compliance terms
Open Freight GlossaryVerify a Broker or Carrier
A shipper checklist for Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) records and double-brokering red flags
Open Verify a Broker or Carrier