What You Need to Know About Heavy Equipment Shipping to Canada
Our world is constantly getting smaller, at least when we consider transportation and shipping. Goods travel around the globe every day, taking less and less time as our systems and technologies evolve. The same advancements make it easier than ever to transport heavy equipment short and far distances. Farmers in Canada can purchase agricultural equipment from anywhere in North America and have the machines shipped directly to them. Small-scale construction firms can access more work opportunities with the ability to transport their equipment further than before. At Trusted Dispatch, we’re helping small and medium companies, and individuals haul the equipment they need to get their jobs done.
Expanding Your Search for Machinery
Canada spans 5,514 km from east to west and 4,634 km north to south, on average. The vastness of this country makes our shipping systems impressive. It’s even more impressive when we think about shipping heavy equipment across the country. Because of the perceived challenges of shipping, many people searching for new or used machinery want to find the right equipment as close as possible.
When local sellers aren’t available, the next option is to explore other markets. The next step is to expand the search market. Many automatically look to neighbouring provinces, while others look over the border onto the United States. Depending on your location, purchasing equipment from a neighbouring state may result in less distance and a reduced cost compared to shipping a machine from the other side of the country. In these scenarios, it makes perfect sense to explore your options to ship equipment to Canada.
Transporting any piece of machinery can seem a big undertaking at any distance. Even more so when it crosses the border between Canada and the United States, but when you work with a knowledgeable transport company and experienced drivers, heavy equipment shipping can be straightforward. Let’s examine some of the complications you may expect to face with equipment shipping to Canada and how to avoid them.
How to Avoid Cross-Border Shipping Complications
Sending material, goods, and equipment across the Canada-United States border is an option you might have considered before but avoided due to concerns regarding cost and confusing policies. No one wants to experience complications when shipping valuable farming, construction equipment, or other heavy machinery. It may feel easier to restrict your purchasing options to locations within Canada. However, a farmer in Southern Alberta might search for the right tractor or combine at the right price within Canada and find it in Ontario. At the same time, the same piece of equipment might be readily available from a location in Montana. When all costs are considered, it might be to the farmer’s advantage to purchase the equipment from Montana and ship it into Canada than arrange a long haul from Ontario.
If you’ve ever hesitated to consider shipping heavy equipment into Canada because it seemed too complicated, we’ll simplify the requirements in this article. Let’s begin with three common areas where customers can experience difficulties when unprepared for any type of heavy haul shipping; then, we’ll cover tips to make the entire process smoother.
Logistics
The most important complexity to sort out is how you will ship your equipment to Canada. Very few people are professional truck drivers with their own semi-trucks and access to the appropriate trailer to haul machines. Not only that, but few people have the available time it takes to retrieve an equipment purchase and haul it home.
Not all shipping companies are the same. Trusted Dispatch works with a network of experienced, professional heavy haul truck drivers that transport shipments across North America. In three simple steps, you can enter the make, model, and dimensions of your machine, along with the pick-up and drop-off destinations, to get your free, instant quote for shipping.
Once you officially publish your shipment details to our load board, one of our drivers will claim your shipment and work with you directly to sort out the logistical details necessary to transport your shipment successfully.
Unexpected Tariffs and Taxes
With other companies, customers can encounter unexpected costs in the shipping process. One example of this is facing tariffs and taxes at the border. Each shipment is different, and whether or not you’ll need to pay fees with a cross-border shipment will depend on various factors. If you’ve never had a piece of heavy equipment hauled into Canada, we recommend doing a bit of research first. Or better yet, hire a customs broker to help. We’ll discuss the benefits of customs brokers further down in this article.
Overall Shipping Cost
No one wants to be surprised by their bill at the end of a shipment. Different trucking companies will calculate their rates differently, but the size and distance are the primary factors. What you want to look for is a company that offers transparent pricing. At Trusted Dispatch, we provide free instant quotes for all prospective customers, so you know what your bill will be after the shipment is delivered. That way, there are no surprises when it comes to the final bill.
Tips to Make Your Shipment Go Smoother
We highlighted three of the more common factors that can make heavy equipment shipping seem complicated. Now, let’s look at some tips that can help you ensure your shipment goes as smoothly as possible.
Hire a Customs Broker
Customs brokers are experts regarding Canadian import and export laws and regulations. If your shipment is coming into Canada from the United States, we recommend hiring a customs broker. A customs broker can help you organize all the necessary documents required to bring a piece of machinery or heavy equipment into the country. This can require documents such as bills of lading and purchase receipts.
It is essential to have all your paperwork organized and filed prior to the driver picking up your shipment. If filing your forms is left until the last minute, your driver could potentially be forced to wait at the border to cross until your paperwork is received. Not only is this highly unfair and inconvenient for the driver, but it will also cost you more money.
Know the Dimensions of Your Equipment
There are various reasons why you need to know the exact dimensions of your equipment. For starters, you need to tell the driver what they are hauling so they can have the proper truck and trailer to get the job done. At Trusted Dispatch, we require the make, model, and dimensions of your shipment before we can give you an instant, free quote.
The cost to ship your equipment depends on the weight and measurements of your machine. The weight will determine how many axels are required on the trailer and truck, while the size will determine the type of trailer the driver will use. The way our load board functions also requires the specs to be pre-determined. Drivers on certain routes with the right trailer will claim the loads that are best suited for them.
We’ve assisted many customers in finding the right details for their equipment either through the manufacturing site or other resources. With so many different makes, models, and types of machinery out there, we know it can be difficult to track down those details for your load. This is why we created our powerful Specs Tool. We have over 60,000 machines pre-loaded into the app to help you find the dimensions that match your make and model. Enter in as much detail as you know to find the measurements that correspond. If you still can’t find the information required, you can contact us for help.
Have Your Load Ready to Go Before the Driver Arrives
Before your driver arrives, it can really speed up the process if you prepare your machine in advance. Preparation includes everything from washing your machine and removing excess dirt, mud, or other debris, to parking the equipment in a position that is easy for the driver to load from.While most of our loads are straightforward roll-on and roll-off, there may be loads that require assistance loading and unloading. If you have items that require a forklift or a crane to be loaded onto the truck, you’ll have an easier time finding a driver if you can provide assistance with the loading. You can read more about loading processes here.
Different types of hauls require slightly different preparations. Here are a few different breakdowns that will help you make the haul more efficient.
How to Prepare Equipment or Shipping
The preparation of a shipment depends on who the sender is. If you’ve purchased a new or used piece of equipment from a location in the United States or somewhere else in Canada, you won’t have direct control of the preparation process. You can ask questions of the person or company at the pick-up location to help them make the process smoother at their end.
Of course, when you are the person shipping equipment, you can follow these steps more closely to create an efficient yet secure send-off.
Long Hauls
A long-haul is typically defined as covering a distance of over 250 miles or roughly 400 km. These distances traveled generally require an entire day or several to finish the delivery, which is why the logistics are more involved. If this will be a multi-day journey, the driver needs to plan for rest, accommodations, and refueling.
Your equipment also needs preparation for a long haul compared to short-hauls. It’s recommended that the battery be disconnected during a long haul that takes more than a day. Specific openings, such as the smoke stack on a tractor, would benefit from being fitted with a covering to prevent dirt and debris from falling into it. You might also want to consider washing and cleaning the equipment before a long haul to ensure it looks decent when it arrives at the final destination. Our drivers will also cover the windshield to prevent damage during transit.
Heavy Hauls
The two most important factors for transporting a heavy haul are to have the right trailer and to secure the machine properly. No matter the distance your machine is going to travel, it can cause significant damage and poses a safety hazard if safety is not prioritized. Your driver should have experience with heavy haul shipping and know how to load and secure the shipment safely.
The truck drivers that use our heavy haul load board have years of experience hauling heavy machinery across Canada and North America. Our drivers arrive with the right equipment, take the time to secure everything correctly, and will ensure your machine is transported safely and efficiently.
Oversized Loads
A load that is considered oversized will vary from region to region, but in general, it can mean it is overly wide (over 8’6”) or overly tall (over 13’). Oversized shipments can require some additional planning to ensure success. This can range from putting a banner and a sign on the truck indicating that the load is oversized and other vehicles on the roadways know to be cautious around the truck. In other places, a pilot car is required to accompany the oversized shipments and alert surrounding drivers to be cautious also.
When you post your load to Trusted Dispatch, your driver will contact you if they recognize that your shipment is likely to be oversized. They will also discuss with you the additional costs required to transport an oversized load, according to Canadian law.
Each machine is different, and some types require one shipment that is oversized. In other scenarios with various other equipment, parts of the machine can be dismantled to allow the pieces to travel as a regular-sized load or to be transported separately as two loads. This may or may not be more cost-effective and should be discussed either with your driver or with our support team. We will always do our best to answer all your questions.
Make Trusted Dispatch Your Go-To Heavy Equipment Shipping Company
We want Trusted Dispatch to be your go-to resource for all your heavy equipment shipping needs. Whether you’re transporting a tractor you purchased in an auction or sending a combine to another farming operation, Trusted Dispatch is ready and waiting to match your load with experienced, professional truck drivers. And when you have questions, simply contact our customer rep, who will do their best to find the answers you need and help you get clarity with your shipping needs. Get your free shipping quote instantly.
