If you’re a furniture company importing or exporting household items nationally or internationally, shipping containers are an ideal solution. There are several shipping container options available to you. The best option for you depends on your shipment size, how fast you need your items to reach their destination, and your budget.
Why Use Shipping Containers?
Shipping containers are a good choice for moving furniture long distance or international moving. They are also ideal for local moves, for example, if you’ve imported furniture and you need it transporting to your nearby showroom.
Asiana USA uses intermodal shipping containers. Intermodal containers can be used across different modes of transport and eliminates the need to load and unload items during shipping.
We can transfer intermodal containers from ship, to rail, to truck, which helps to reduce the costs of shipping and transit time. This gives you a fast, affordable option for moving your furniture stock nationally or internationally.
Shipping containers are spacious, which is ideal if you have lots of stock to transport. Containers are secure and robust, protecting your items from loss, damage and theft.
There are various types of shipping containers you can choose from. These include standard, insulated and climate controlled. Depending on what you’re shipping and your budget, we can help you choose the right type of container.
Shipping Container Options
You can move your household items in shipping containers in one of the following ways:
Full Container Load (FCL) Shipping
If you’re shipping household goods in bulk, such as furniture, FCL shipping is your best option. You can rent a shipping container that’s exclusive to your shipment, providing plenty of space to transport items in one journey. This is ideal if you’re shipping items to an international branch of your business.
Asiana USA offers a full service, FCL shipping service. We take care of the necessary documentation, including the bill of lading, which is a detailed list of what you’re shipping. We also handle customs clearance, delivery and unloading of your items at their final destination.
FCL shipping is direct, so offers the fastest transit times for goods shipments and keeps your moving costs down.
Shared Shipping Container
If you don’t have a lot of furniture stock to move, you can share a shipping container with shipments heading to the same destination. Shared shipping is ideal if you’re on a budget as you will only pay for the space that you use. Compared to FCL shipping, sharing a container is highly economical, but transit times are longer.
You can choose from two types of shared container shipping:
1. Less Than Container Load Shipping (LCL)
You can combine your shipment with other freight that’s being transported to the same destination, if you only have a small number of items to ship. The cost of shipping will be split between all those transporting items. LCL shipping is good value for money, but be prepared for longer transit times.
If you’re moving furniture stock in the USA, LCL shipping is ideal for moving household items by truck. Asiana USA offers LCL shipping services, taking care of all the paperwork, packaging and delivery of your shipment to its final destination.
2. Group Shipping
Group shipments are similar to LCL shipping, except that your shipment is grouped with other items that are being shipped to the same destination by your moving company. Group shipping is a low cost way of moving your items in shipping containers.
Group shipping takes longer to organize as several collections will have to be made. This will affect transit times, so if you need your stock delivered fast, you should consider FCL shipping.
Alternatives to Shipping Containers
For smaller shipments, air freight gives you a fast alternative for shipping your furniture stock. Asiana USA offers national and international freight forwarding services by air. In most cases, we can arrange shipment of your goods on the same business day.
Compared to shipping by sea, rail and truck, your shipment will arrive faster at destination ports. However, air shipments can utilize intermodal shipping containers. This means that your items will have to be loaded, unloaded and reloaded during transit. This increases the risk of loss, damage and can cause delays.
The cost of air freight is also significantly higher than shipping by sea. When deciding how to move your furniture inventory, you will have to weigh the cost against speed of delivery.
Choosing the Right Shipping Container for You
If you’re moving a significant amount of furniture stock and you want your shipment to be direct, then FCL shipping is the best option for you. FCL shipping gives you exclusive use of a container and you can choose from several sizes to accommodate your items. This includes 20ft., 40ft. and 45ft. options. Bigger sizes are also available.
LCL shipping is ideal if you’re moving small furniture items. This is a low cost way to ship your goods as you will only pay for the space that you use. However, transit times are a little longer compared to FCL shipping.
Group shipping offers you the lowest cost for moving your household item inventory in shipping containers. However, transit times can vary, but are typically longer compared to FCL and LCL shipping. If sticking within a budget is your biggest consideration, then group shipping represents the best option for you.
If you’re unsure what type of shipping container is right for you, it’s a good idea to partner with an experienced shipping service who can help you. You will benefit from advice on choosing the right shipping container for you. In fact, a specialist shipping company will help organize everything to ensure your goods are shipped safely.
At Asiana USA, we can help you work out how much space your items will need for safe, secure shipping. We assist you in choosing the right shipping container and then coordinate with our network of specialists to arrange your shipment from start to finish.
If you’re shipping overseas, we have offices and personnel based in several countries and we’re uniquely positioned to serve you. We offer world-class shipping and moving services that you can count on. Our dedication to customer service is second to none and we go above and beyond to ensure your satisfaction.
Shipping Container Solutions from Asiana USA
Asiana USA offers full service shipping solutions to move items anywhere in America or overseas. Our network of connections includes storage facilities, truck companies, loading and unloading services and more. We ensure that your furniture inventory is transported safely and securely, while keeping the costs of shipping down.
A good moving service takes care of everything for you. We work with many businesses in the furniture industry, offering a reliable, stress-free service. Partnering with us will make shipping your furniture inventory easier. For help planning shipment of your stock in shipping containers anywhere around the world, call us at (855) 500-1808.
