Transport management deals with the planning and execution of freight movement by looking after the details, such as whether it will move by land, sea, or air. It looks at other factors like carriers’ rates and services as well as compliance data and documentation.
Transport logistics is a subset of transport management that drills deeper. It adds the storage, handling, cataloging, and packaging of goods and services. It’s another layer of the details needed to move freight through a supply chain and ship it safely and efficiently from point A to point B.
Multimodal transportation refers to shipping that uses several modes like air, ocean, rail, and/or truck. Goods are often shipped under one contract. One carrier is legally responsible but uses subcarriers.
Intermodal transportation is about using different companies to handle the same shipment. Multiple carriers take on a single shipment using different modes. This type of transport provides more flexibility when choosing rates and prices but is more difficult to coordinate.
Less Than Truckload (LTL) is the name for a shipment that’s larger than just smaller packages but doesn’t fill an entire truck. Typically, these LTL freight shipments weigh less than 10,000 pounds. LTL carriers often handle parcels and smaller packages.
As the name suggests, Full Truck Load (FTL) freight refers to a shipment that fills most or all of a truck. These shipments can weigh up to 45,000 pounds – that’s roughly 30 pallets in a typical 53-foot trailer according to UShip.com