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In order to understand about ocean freight, it is easiest to reach for another concept: a freighter. This term refers to a merchant ship which, while remaining at the carrier’s disposal, carries out the transport of goods by sea. 

Translating this definition into the meaning of the word freight. It can be stated that it is the transport of goods by the sea with the help of a merchant ship specially designed for this purpose. i.e. a freighter.

What Role Does It Play In The Process Of Transporting Goods? 

Initially, freight simply meant a charge for shipping cargo, the meaning of the term was only expanded at a later date. The main idea is to determine the rate of freight each time depending on the amount (weight) of the load and its volume. 

Initially, there was a rule that the freight was paid only when the undamaged goods arrived at the agreed place on time. Ocean Freight, however, is quite unpredictable, with too many factors. Beyond the ship’s handling can cause delays in transport, including such a factor, will be changeable weather and storms that will make it impossible to continue the journey. Therefore, various methods have been used, which will make even a dissatisfied customer have to pay a fee. Often payments in advance or a freight advance are introduced.

If you are planning a groupage transport and you know that it will not be a full container transport. Then before you decide to use ocean freight, you should find out if there is an additional fee for the unused load capacity of the ship. If such a fee is foreseen, it is good to find someone else who will be interested in ocean freight on the same route.

How Is The Ocean Freight Rate Charged?

The basic division concerns Full container Load (FCL) and Less than Container Load (LCL). Both for FCL and LCL transport, the structure of the freight rate and the allowances are similar. But they differ in the method of charging per unit (container and weight/measure).

For the transport of full containers, ocean Freight rate consists of base freight, which may range from the port of loading to the final port of landing. Some shipowners treat this item as a rate only for transport by ocean-going ships and separately list/mention the charge for transport by a feeder vessel (TAD – Transport ADditional). An example can be imported on the route Hong Kong -> Hamburg (base freight) and transport from Hamburg -> Gdynia (TAD)

A number of additions should be added to the ocean freight rate understood in this way. Some of them are constant and only their height changes, others appear seasonally and are caused by various external factors or a change in the shipowner’s policy.

Ocean Freight Shipping Characteristics

In ocean freight shipping, as in other types of transport. We can carry out a classification based on different work organizations and places of unloading. The basic division included:

Cabotage, i.e. the transport of goods from one port to another within the same country,

Linear, i.e. cyclical, regular cargo transportation on fixed routes,

Tramp, i.e. irregular transport of goods conditioned by the market demand at a given moment,

Shuttle, that is, the carriage of cargo between two specified ports.

We can also differentiate ocean freight shipping according to the type of transport. The most popular currently are full container transport. ie Full Container Loading (FLC), or groupage transport, ie Less Container Loading (LCL).

Among the advantages that characterize the ocean freight shipping of goods, one can distinguish above all the high load capacity of ships. Currently, the largest container ship in the world, MSC Gulsun, has more than 23.765 TEU. And relatively low transport costs compared to other available means of transport. What’s more, nowadays, this type of freight – thanks to transporters and transport boxes move all types of products, including oversized goods. Equally important is the fact that shipping is a type of transport characterized by the range of traveled routes. 

Advantages of Ocean Freight

The main advantage of ocean freight is financial savings. This type of transport includes a low accident rate, which is one of the safest means of cargo transport. It has the ability to transport any type of goods – there are no restrictions in this regard.  Nevertheless, the main advantage of ocean freight is its capacity. It is the only mode of transport that offers such a high payload. This type of transport is also distinguished by its long-range and low accident rate.