Steel & Metals Drayage
Moving imported steel & metals from the port to your warehouse, plant or distribution center. Coils, sheets, plate, bundled and long products with heavy floor loads.
Imported steel is one of the hardest commodities to warehouse well, because the constraint is almost never square footage, it is floor load rating, handling equipment and door dimensions. A 40 ft container of coils can weigh over 40,000 lb concentrated across a few points of contact, and most general-purpose distribution buildings are not rated for it.
What Moves in These Containers
- Steel coils (slit, master, banded)
- Sheet and plate
- Bundled long products, bar, angle, rebar
- Aluminum and non-ferrous metals
- Pipe and tube
- Structural and fabricated components
Drayage Considerations
Heavy industrial commodities like steel & metals change the drayage equation. Container weight determines whether a standard chassis is legal or a tri-axle is required, and overweight moves price differently at every port. Terminal appointments, chassis pool availability and your receiving window all shape the final rate far more than the line haul itself.
If the container is staying intact to your facility, drayage is the whole move. If it needs to be reworked, transloading near the port often beats draying a heavy box inland. Our consultants price both and tell you which is cheaper for your freight.