Furniture shipping and packing- Everything you need to know

1. Furniture shipping and packing: Everything you need to know Furniture costs a lot. One has to be extra cautious when transporting furniture. While ocean freight shipping is the best choice when shipping furniture internationally, air freight is faster and expensive comparatively. Depending on the volume of the furniture you have to either choose Less-than Container Load (LCL) shipping or a Full Container Load (FCL) shipping; if the volume is between 2m3 and 13m3, opt for LCL shipping and if it is more than 14m3, choose FCL. Now the question arises how to pack the furniture. Well, packing is taken care by freight forwarders who are also experts at it, but it is better to have the knowledge as it may help you understand things and save some cost, so here we have mentioned the ways to pack the furniture: 1.Dismantle into smaller parts The lesser volume the furniture has, the lesser shipping will cost you, which is why packing should be such that the furniture occupies less space. So whether it is a chair, cupboard, table or bed frame, it must be taken apart down to its smallest unit and then packed. 2.Pack the dismantled parts Once the furniture is dismantled, wrap all the parts individually and stack them one over the other with minimal space between them so that they are securely packed and do not move much. Fill the empty space with padding or requisite packing material. 3.Cover the sharp corners When the cargo is in transit, sudden movements are bound to happen which may cause it to be damaged. And like we said before that furniture is expensive so you wouldn’t want it to have a scratch or dent. The best you can do to keep your furniture intact is cover the sharp

2. corners which are more prone to breakage with protective material like a bubble wrap, foam wrap or any other material. 4.Label it properly Labelling is very essential when you are shipping cargo and especially furniture. Label each and every single item with shipper’s and consignee’s names, contact information and other important details like handling instructions; whether the item is fragile or should be kept this way up. 5.Stack on pallets After the packing and labelling is done, stack the different furniture boxes onto the pallets. While stacking, make sure the weight is evenly distributed and the boxes are not jutting out beyond the perimeter of the pallets. So this was about packing of the furniture, now we share a few important tips that you need to keep in mind when shipping furniture: 1.Take photos When you have the photo of your cargo, it’s easier to claim insurance in case of damage. So after the furniture is packed in boxes, make sure that you click the pictures such that the box number is visible before and after stacking them onto the pallet. 2.Buy insurance It is better to buy insurance and thus cover damages to your furniture during ocean fright journey. 3.Don’t take anything and everything In order to lower the shipment volume and cost, one should consider leaving bulky furniture, especially if it is of low-value and can be easily replaced. These are some of the basic packing tips. When you hire a reliable freight forwarder, you don’t have to look into the packing as all this would be done by him. In case you wish to do it yourself, then these tips will come handy for you.