Put Your LCL Ocean Freight on Fast Forward with Exim Cargo
There’s LCL ocean shipping, and there’s Latin American LCL ocean shipping—and we know the latter inside out. So you can concentrate on your business, safe in the knowledge that your freight is in the best of professional hands.
Ship Smaller, Pay Less
Save money on smaller shipments: When shipping LCL, you only pay for the volume you use, and not a cent more.
Lean Your Inventory
With LCL freight, you can ship small consignments at regular intervals, ideal for managing a lean inventory strategy.
Beat the Capacity Crunch
When peak periods and black swan events constrain shipping capacity and make containers scarce, it’s often easier to secure space through LCL ocean services.
What is LCL Shipping and When Should You Use It?
LCL is an acronym for less than container load, and is a mode of ocean container shipping suitable when you need to transport goods in quantities too small to fill a shipping container. You’ll find ocean LCL an ideal way to transport freight if your import or export strategy involves any of the following scenarios:
When you ship in volumes of less than 13 cubic meters
When shipping containers are too big for your business
When cost matters more than speed
LCL and More: Mix and Match for a Complete Logistics Solution
Our extensive service portfolio means you can combine several services, switch between them as required, and generally mix and match to place all your logistics needs under one roof.
For example, you can combine LCL freight shipping with:
LCL Shipping with EXIM:
Our Service Options
With our unparalleled range of services and tailored business support, Exim Cargo is the only LCL freight forwarder you need. Choose from the following services to meet your needs, budget, schedule and expectations:
Door-to-Port LCL Shipping
If you’re an exporter, this service offers you the most competitive prices. Our door to port LCL sea freight services are inclusive of:
- Collection of your consignment at the point of origin
- Transfer to a consolidation center
- Consolidation of your consignment with other shippers’ goods to fill a container
- Transfer to port of loading
- Customs clearance services at port of loading
- Management of terminal fees at port of loading
- Ocean shipping to port of discharge
Door-to-door LCL Shipping
Our end-to-end solution for LCL freight shipping, shipping in less than container load volumes couldn’t be easier when you choose the door-to-door option, which includes:
- Pickup of your consignment at the point of origin
- Delivery to a consolidation center
- Consolidation of your consignment with other shippers’ goods into a full container load
- Delivery to port of loading
- Customs clearance at port of loading
- Terminal fee management at port of loading
- Ocean shipping to port of discharge
- Customs clearance at port of discharge
- Management of terminal fees at port of discharge
- Transfer from port of discharge to consolidation center (for deconsolidation)
- Deconsolidation and preparation for delivery
- Delivery from consolidation center to final destination
Port-to-door LCL shipping
When you’re on the import side of an international sales transaction, our port to door LCL service gives you the ability to optimise your freight costs. This service comprises:
- Ocean carriage to the port of discharge
- Customs clearance services at the port of discharge
- Handling of terminal fees at port of discharge
- Road freight from port to a consolidation warehouse (for deconsolidation)
- Unloading and separation of your goods (destuffing and deconsolidation)
- Delivery to final destination
Ask Us About Additional LCL Services
LCL ocean freight becomes much easier when you use a single provider for all the core and value added processes to complete your logistics needs. Palletization, consolidation and deconsolidation, warehousing, cargo insurance, we can take care of all these additional services to enhance your overall LCL logistics experience.
LCL Quotes From Experts, not Algorithms
Here at Exim, we know that a quote which suits one customer will be less than ideal for another. That’s why, when you contact us for an LCL freight quote, a real person will ask the right questions and compile a quote specifically tailored to suit your needs.
Ask us for a customized quote for your next LCL shipment—delivered by expert, not algorithm!
Why Ship LCL Ocean Freight With Exim Cargo?
Would you like to let go of the frustrations and sunk time involved when working with multiple forwarders and shipping companies? Our LCL freight forwarding services can support all your imports and exports between the Americas and the rest of the globe.
A Personable Approach to Logistics Facilitation
We take a personable approach to supporting businesses, cutting through the jargon and offering not only exemplary LCL services, but sound advice and guidance too, on everything from incoterms and LCL shipping rates to import/export regulations.
No Oversell of LCL
There comes a point at which FCL shipping becomes a more economical solution than LCL, typically when a consignment is on the larger side (over 13 cubic meters). And sometimes FCL is just more practical, even if it costs more. We’ll always advise you accordingly, so your total cost of international shipping is not unnecessarily inflated.
Our shipping clients and partners
Exim Cargo proudly provides FCL services and partnership opportunities for a wide range of international and Latin American companies.
Contact Us
We are always happy to discuss solutions to your shipping challenges. Complete the form and we’ll be pleased to provide a rapid response.
Monday to Friday 08:00 at 20:00
LCL Ocean Shipping: Frequently Asked Questions
LCL ocean freight shipping is not the simplest of activities for the layman, even the more logistics savvy sort, to navigate. That’s why we often find ourselves answering questions posed by interested shippers. Here are a few of the questions that we field on a regular basis, along with the answers, of course.
When deciding between LCL and FCL shipping, you need to consider several factors and the answer is not always obvious. The difference between FCL and LCL shipping is that the latter is more suitable for small consignments, from a few cartons to a few pallets, while FCL makes most sense for shipments of more than six or seven pallets. That said, sometimes it can be worth paying for a full container even if you don’t fill it, since LCL freight rates are often higher per cubic meter than FCL. In general, once your volume rises to 13 cubic meters or above, you may wish to consider FCL rather than LCL shipping.
LCL ocean freight shipping can become complicated. By using a single provider for all the associated processes, you can save yourself a lot of headaches and the experience becomes much simpler. That’s why we offer a full range of value-added services to complement our core LCL ocean freight services, but you’re not obliged to use them and can make your own arrangements if you prefer.
All our LCL ocean shipping services are already offset at no additional cost to you and we work with all our partners to minimize carbon emissions as much as possible. Especially when you have a small consignment, it is worth remembering that LCL shipping emits much less carbon dioxide compared to air freight transportation.
Every mode of freight transportation has its drawbacks, and LCL is no exception. For example:
- LCL shipments need to be consolidated and de-consolidated, which can add considerably to overall transit time for your freight.
- In terms of cost per cubic meter, FCL shipping is cheaper than LCL (although LCL shipping rates are typically more stable than FCL).
- If other shippers’ consignments transported in your container face customs delays, your goods too, will experience the same period of delay. Issues like this cannot occur in FCL shipping.
- Goods shipped as LCL cargo are handled more, increasing the risks of damage and/or loss.
The two main factors to consider when making this decision are:
- How quickly you need your goods.
- How much you are willing to pay.
In general, LCL container shipping will be much cheaper for heavier goods while air freight will be much faster. Air freight and LCL costs both depend on weight and volume, but with air freight, weight is the deciding factor while for LCL it is volume. In addition, you may want to consider the nature of your cargo, as air freight is subject to more restrictions than LCL ocean shipping, especially for hazardous goods.
