Temperature-controlled shipping is the transportation of freight that is perishable and sensitive to climate conditions. After all, you don’t want to ship ground beef across the country when it’s 90-degrees outside and no temperature control on your truck. Or, how about chocolate? We’ve all opened a previously melted candy bar before. While it may seem like common sense whether you should ship in a temperature-controlled truck or not, there is more to this decision than you might think.
Sensitivity vs. Value
Believe it or not, not all perishable freight needs to be transported by a temperature-controlled truck. What you are trying to weigh is how the environmental conditions will affect your product and is your product highly sensitive to fluctuating or extreme temperatures, or somewhat sensitive. Remember, temperature-controlled transport is more costly than a dry van or other types of transport. So, identifying details such as climate, perishability, and distance, may help your decision.
Cargo dimensions
While a standard truck’s cargo dimensions may be 53’ x 8’ x 9’ don’t forget that for temperature-controlled freight additional precautions must be met such as thick insulators as well as the weight of temperature control equipment play a factor. So, while you may need to transport your perishable freight in a temperature-controlled truck, you may also need to consider if you will need more space than previously planned.
Added packing
Temperature-controlled transport also means that different freight will require different cargo packing. Insulation materials such as expanded polystyrene (EPS) foam, rigid polyurethane, and radiant barrier films are popular choices. You may also use dry ice and other coolants. However, transportation isn’t just about moving a temperature-controlled truck, but also in managing what is in the load. So, shipping frozen and refrigerated items might also mean additional packing and cleanup supplies for when spills occur.
Temperature-controlled transportation has specialized regulations which manage how freight is transported, weight considerations, as well as labeling if using /dangerous goods/hazardous materials such as dry ice. Universal Dynasty has the experience and know how to advise if temperature-controlled shipping is right for you, so contact us today if you have questions or would like to schedule transportation!
