Guide
Freight for fabricated parts: who ships, who pays, and what to put on the request
A quote for a part is a quote for the part at the shop's dock unless it says otherwise. How it gets from there to your floor is a separate question with a few standard answers, and getting it right before the quote avoids the two common surprises: a freight bill nobody budgeted, and a weldment that arrives bent because nobody said how it would travel.
Send a drawingUpdated October 8, 2026
FCA at the dock: the default
On Amerigo the Standard Terms of Sale set the default as FCA (Incoterms 2020) at the manufacturer's facility: the goods are handed to your carrier at the shop's dock, and from that point the freight, the insurance and the risk are yours. The shop packs the goods, loads them, and gives you or your carrier the paperwork. This is also how most job shops work with their regular customers, because the buyer usually has a carrier account with better rates than a small shop.
A quote can state something else, for instance a delivered price on the shop's own truck or a freight line it books for you, and when it does the quote governs. Read the delivery terms on the quote card; they are shown to you before you accept.
Parcel, LTL or dedicated
| Shipment | Goes by | When | What the shop needs |
|---|---|---|---|
| A box under about 150 lb | Parcel (UPS, FedEx Ground) | Small machined parts, brackets, a few panels | Your account number, or the shop ships and bills it |
| A pallet or a crate | LTL freight | Enclosures, frames, plate packages, anything palletized | Your carrier account or a freight booking, dock or liftgate, a PRO number comes back |
| A large weldment or several pallets | Dedicated or flatbed | Machine bases, skids, long frames | A booking with dimensions and weight; tarp and strapping on a flatbed |
| Will call | Your own truck | Local work | A pickup time; the shop stages it |
Crating and packaging
Machined parts are usually oiled or wrapped and boxed with separators so finished surfaces do not touch. Sheet metal panels with a cosmetic finish are interleaved and strapped to a pallet. Weldments are blocked and strapped, and anything with a machined face or a finished coat that can be damaged is crated. Crating is real work and is quoted as a line: a crate for a machine base can be a few hundred dollars of lumber and labor, and it is worth it.
If a part must arrive flat, must not be stacked, or has a finish that scratches, say so on the request. The shop quotes the packaging to match and the freight claim, if one is ever needed, starts from a documented pack.
What to put on the request
- The ship-to address and whether it has a dock, a forklift, or needs a liftgate.
- Your carrier account if you have one, or a note that the shop should quote freight.
- Any delivery window, or a date the parts are needed by, so the shop can plan the pickup.
- Crating or packaging needs for finished, flat or fragile parts.
- For a multi-part package, whether partials can ship as they finish.
How Amerigo records the shipment
When your carrier picks up at the dock, the manufacturer marks the order as picked up and enters the PRO or BOL number if there is one; when it ships on its own account it enters the carrier and the tracking number. You see either on the order. When the goods arrive, Amerigo records the delivery date and your 14-day inspection window starts from it. The manufacturer is paid when you accept the goods or when that window closes without a claim.
Questions buyers ask
- Does Amerigo arrange freight?
- No. Amerigo acts as the manufacturer's agent for the order and does not book or insure freight. The default is your carrier at the shop's dock; a quote can include delivery when the shop offers it.
- Who pays if the part is damaged in transit?
- Under FCA, risk passes to you when the carrier takes the goods, so the claim is with your carrier and your insurance. Documented packaging from the shop is what a carrier claim rests on, which is why packaging needs belong on the request.
- Can I pick the parts up myself?
- Yes. Will call at the shop's dock is the simplest form of FCA. Say so on the request and the shop stages the parts and tells you when they are ready.
About Amerigo. Amerigo is the sourcing network for American manufacturing. More about Amerigo