Freight and Logistics Terminology

Shipper: The company or person that needs freight transported.
Carrier: The trucking company or owner-operator that physically transports the freight.
Consignee: The person or business receiving the shipment.
Broker: A licensed intermediary who connects shippers with carriers and coordinates transportation.
Freight Broker: A person or company that arranges transportation between a shipper and a carrier without owning the trucks.
Owner-Operator: A truck driver who owns and operates their own truck.

Freight: Goods or products being transported from one place to another.
Load: A shipment of freight that needs to be transported.
Load Board: An online marketplace where brokers post available freight and carriers search for loads.
Lane: The route between the pickup location and the delivery location.
Dedicated Lane: A regularly scheduled shipping route used repeatedly by the same customer.
Pickup: The location where the freight is collected.
Delivery: The location where the freight is unloaded.
Transit Time: The amount of time required for freight to travel from pickup to delivery.

Dispatch: The process of assigning a driver and truck to transport a load.
Dispatcher: The person responsible for assigning loads to drivers and coordinating schedules.
Fleet: A group of trucks owned or operated by one company.
Dry Van: An enclosed trailer used for transporting general freight.
Flatbed: An open trailer used for oversized or unusually shaped cargo.
Reefer: A refrigerated trailer used to transport temperature-sensitive freight.
LTL (Less-Than-Truckload): Freight that shares trailer space with shipments from other customers.
FTL (Full Truckload): A shipment that fills an entire trailer or is moved exclusively for one customer.

Backhaul: A return load that keeps a truck loaded on its trip back instead of traveling empty.
Deadhead: Driving an empty truck without a load.
Capacity: The number of trucks available to move freight.

Tender: An offer made by a shipper to a carrier or broker to transport a load.
Freight Quote: The estimated price to move a shipment.
Rate: The agreed-upon price for transporting freight.
Rate Confirmation: A document confirming the agreed rate and shipment details between the broker and carrier.
Margin: The difference between what the shipper pays and what the broker pays the carrier.