Cargo

Cargo is stuff that moves from place to place.

It can travel on big ships. Ships carry things in large boxes.

Cargo also flies on planes. Planes move things very fast.

Trains carry heavy things like wood and coal. Big trucks move food to stores. This helps get things to you. What is your favorite thing to buy?

Cargo is the name for goods moved from place to place.

These goods can travel by land, water, or air.

Ships carry many types of cargo. Some goods are kept in big metal boxes. These are called containers. Other goods are moved in large amounts without boxes. This is called bulk cargo. Examples of bulk cargo include salt, grain, and oil.

Some goods are handled one piece at a time. This is called break bulk. Workers might use cranes to lift these items.

Planes also carry cargo. Air cargo moves very fast. Some planes are built just to carry goods. They use special boxes called unit load devices, or ULDs.

These boxes help load the plane quickly.

Trains and trucks are also important. Trains can carry a lot of heavy things. They are good for moving goods over long distances. Trucks move many things, like fresh food for stores. Some trucks carry many different small shipments. This is called less-than-truckload freight. Other trucks carry one big load. This is called truckload freight.

Cargo is the name for goods moved from place to place.

These goods can travel by land, water, or air. People use many ways to move these items. Some items are called freight when they are moved for money. This includes things like food or household goods. Even empty containers are called cargo when they are shipped.

Moving goods works in many different ways. Ships can carry cargo in large metal boxes. These boxes are called containers. Other ships carry bulk cargo. This is cargo that is not in boxes or on pallets. Examples of bulk cargo include salt, oil, and grain. Some goods are called break bulk. These are handled one piece at a time. Workers might use cranes or nets to lift them.

Planes are a very fast way to move cargo. Air cargo moves much faster than most other ways. Aircraft first started carrying mail as cargo in 1911. Now, many planes are built just to carry freight. Large planes like the An-124 are made for this job. These planes use special boxes called unit load devices, or ULDs.

These boxes are like the large containers used on ships.

Trains and trucks are also very important for moving goods. Trains can carry huge amounts of heavy things. They are good for moving items like coal or steel over long distances. Trucks move many things, like fresh food to supermarkets. Some trucks carry many small shipments at once. This is called less-than-truckload freight, or LTL. Other trucks carry one big load for just one customer. This is called truckload freight, or TL.

Cargo connects everything in our world. You can see it when a delivery van brings a parcel to your house. You see it when a large ship arrives at a port. Many businesses use different types of cargo to grow. Some people use brokers to help find the best prices. These experts help shippers find the cheapest way to move their goods.

This keeps the world moving every day.

Cargo refers to any goods that are being transported across land, water, or air. While the term is often used broadly, there are specific ways to define its movement. In the field of economics, the term freight is used to describe goods moved for commercial gain at a specific freight rate. The concept of cargo also extends to the cold-chain. This includes perishable inventory that is always in transit toward an end-use. This transit can occur even while items are held in climate-controlled warehouses or cold storage.

Maritime shipping uses several distinct methods to move goods across the ocean. One method involves break bulk or general cargo. These are goods handled piecemeal rather than in large containers. They are often bundled in batches using cargo nets, slings, or crates. Workers may also stack them on pallets or skids. These items are typically lifted into a vessel's holds using cranes or derricks. If they are placed on the deck, stevedores must man-handle and stow them. To keep this cargo secure, workers use dunnage. Since the 1960s, the use of break bulk has declined as containers became more popular.

Another major maritime category is bulk cargo. These are commodities that are not placed in containers or on pallets. Bulk cargo is divided into two types: liquid and dry. Dry bulk examples include alumina, grain, gypsum, logs, and wood chips. Liquid bulk includes substances like oil and tallow. Some items, such as scrap metal, are also considered bulk. Unlike heavy-lift or project cargo, bulk items are not handled as individual pieces.

Air cargo provides a much faster way to move goods compared to other methods. Air freight specifically refers to goods carried in the cargo hold of a dedicated plane. Aircraft were first used to carry mail as cargo in 1911. Today, many aircraft are designed specifically for freight. The Boeing 747 is a common example. The An-124 was also purposely built to be easily converted into a cargo aircraft.

These large planes use standardized containers called unit load devices, or ULDs. ULDs are comparable to the ISO containers used on ships. They can be stowed in the lower decks or on the main deck of certain aircraft.

Land transportation relies heavily on both rail and road systems. Rail is used to transport massive amounts of water, cement, grain, steel, wood, and coal. Trains are efficient for long distances and direct routes. They are often more economical and energy-efficient than road transport when moving bulk loads. However, rail lacks flexibility and often requires transshipment costs. This happens when goods must be transferred between different modes of transport. Many governments encourage rail use because of its lower environmental impact.

Road transport is highly versatile and moves everything from letters to large containers. Companies like FedEx and Parcelforce use trucks of various sizes. Delivery trucks can range from small vans to massive semi-trucks. Freight on the road is often categorized by its size. Less-than-truckload, or LTL, represents the majority of business-to-business shipments. LTL shipments are often palletized and shrink-wrapped for mixed environments. In contrast, truckload, or TL, freight involves a single large shipment. In the United States, shipments larger than about 10,000 pounds are typically classified as TL. It is more economical for a large shipment to have exclusive use of a trailer.

Understanding the scale of these shipments helps explain global logistics. In the U.S., a fully loaded five-axle rig cannot exceed a specific weight set by the Federal Bridge Gross Weight Formula. Most long-haul equipment weighs about 80,000 pounds, leaving capacity for the freight. Shipments are also categorized by their service level. Express shipments are very small and often travel by air. Parcel shipments are larger boxes that typically move via road and rail. These categories help businesses manage how long an item stays in transit and how much it costs to move.