Palletised freight by road

What palletised freight is

Palletised freight means moving goods grouped on pallets: boxes, sacks, drums or parts that have been stacked and secured on a platform so they can be loaded and unloaded with a pallet truck or forklift. It is the most common way to move packaged products, because each pallet is handled in one go and loading and unloading are quick.

It is a service for manufacturers, warehouses, agricultural cooperatives, distributors and any business that needs to send a lorry load of palletised goods from one place to another. At Transcosur we run it as full loads, in curtainsiders, and in refrigerated trailers when the product needs to be kept cool.

Goods that travel palletised

• Packaged food and farm produce, such as boxes of fruit and vegetables.
• Sacks and bulk bags of agricultural or industrial products.
• Building materials and industrial products on pallets.
• Chilled goods on pallets, in refrigerated trailers.

If the goods are on pallets and fit in a trailer, we can very probably carry them. What changes from one load to another is how it is loaded, how much it weighs and how it has to be secured.

Why the curtainsider suits palletised freight

The curtainsider is the most versatile trailer for pallets. Its sides open, so it can be loaded in two ways:

Loading method	When it is used	Equipment
From the rear, at a bay	Warehouses and buildings with a loading bay	Pallet truck
From the side	Sites without a bay, open yards, farms	Forklift

Side loading is the big advantage: you can load and unload on a farm, on a building site or at a warehouse with no bay, with a forklift and without going inside the trailer.

Refrigerated trailers for chilled loads

When palletised goods need to travel at a controlled temperature, such as some food products or plants, they go in a refrigerated trailer. It is loaded from the rear, at a bay, and the temperature is set to what the product requires.

Pallets in a walking floor

Sometimes pallets also travel in a walking floor. Its floor moves them out of the rear with no need for a forklift inside the trailer, which helps us fit palletised loads in as the return leg of a bulk job.

How a palletised load is protected

Whether the goods arrive in good condition depends on how the pallet is prepared and how it is secured in the lorry. In general, this is what makes a palletised load travel safely:

• Pallets in good condition, with no broken boards, strong enough for the weight they carry.
• Load well strapped or stretch-wrapped, so the boxes do not shift on the pallet.
• Weight spread along the trailer, not concentrated in one spot.
• Pallets tight together, with no large gaps that let the load move.
• Restraint with straps and whatever else each load requires.
• Stacking only where allowed: a pallet that cannot take weight on top must be marked.

The trailer curtain protects against rain and dust, but it does not hold the load: straps and good stowage do that. The driver checks the securing before setting off.

How we work

1. You tell us about the load: number of pallets, dimensions, height, weight and whether they can be stacked.
2. We choose the trailer: curtainsider or refrigerated.
3. We load from the rear or from the side, depending on the site.
4. We secure and check the load before departure.
5. We track the lorry by GPS and confirm delivery with the transport documents.

We work under a quality management system certified to UNE-EN ISO 9001:2015 for road freight transport.

What we need to know to quote

• Number of pallets and type (Euro pallet, 1200 by 1000 or another size).
• Height and weight of each pallet, and whether they can be stacked.
• Type of goods and whether they need temperature control.
• Collection and delivery points, with or without a loading bay.
• Dates, and whether it is a one-off or a regular shipment.
• Documents that have to travel with the goods, if any.

If you have only a few pallets and will not fill the lorry, groupage and part loads will suit you better: you share the journey with other loads.

Palletised freight between Spain and France

We have regular customers and routes in Spain and France, in both directions, and we reach other European countries. For a lorry load of pallets that makes it easier to find dates and match the return leg. If your goods are going to or coming from France, see also road freight between Spain and France.