Get Formal Oversized Plan
Within 2 hours you will receive a formal transport plan and quote.
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for a 1-on-1 plan
Flat-rack, open-top, BUP air, rail, truck and express — we handle out-of-gauge cargo: machinery, heavy equipment, steel structures, vehicles and wind units with lashing and insurance.
Get Formal Oversized Plan| Mode | Transit | What It Handles |
|---|---|---|
| Air Oversized (BUP) | 7–12 days | Urgent out-of-gauge pieces, high-value equipment |
| Sea Oversized (Flat Rack / Open Top) | 25–45 days | Over-length, over-width and heavy-lift cargo |
| Rail Oversized | 18–25 days | Out-of-gauge cargo to EU and Russia inland points |
| Truck Oversized | 12–18 days | Door-to-door out-of-gauge to EU, Russia and Central Asia |
| Express Oversized | 3–7 days | Urgent samples and small out-of-gauge equipment |
The US lane runs three oversized channels, and they are not interchangeable. Sea flat-rack and open-top handle the heavy and the wide; air BUP handles the urgent and the fragile; UPS heavy air handles the pieces that are too big for a parcel but too small to charter. Picking the wrong one usually means the cargo gets re-packed, or refused at the gate.
All three are quoted DDP door: we clear on our own US customs BOND, prepay duty, and deliver with our own truck fleet plus crane or dock where the site needs it. Send a photo, a drawing and the L×W×H plus weight per piece, and we will confirm which channel physically accepts the cargo before we talk price.
The cheapest way to move heavy or over-width cargo to the US, and the only channel that scales to hundred-tonne pieces. Sailings from Yantian to Los Angeles, Long Beach, New York and Savannah.
| Equipment | Usable Platform | Payload | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20 ft Flat Rack | About 5.7 m × 2.2 m | Up to about 30 t | Compact heavy pieces, skids, compact machinery |
| 40 ft Flat Rack | About 12.0 m × 2.0 m between posts | Up to about 45 t | Long machinery, steel structures, over-width loads |
| 40 ft Open Top | About 12.0 m × 2.3 m, roof removed | Up to about 26 t | Over-height cargo that still fits inside the posts |
| Break-bulk / heavy lift | Quoted per shipment | 100 t and above per piece | Transformers, reactors, wind components |
Transit 25–45 days port to port depending on carrier and discharge port; Matson CLX oversized truck to Long Beach is the fastest sea option. Inland over-width movement in the US needs a state permit and sometimes an escort — we arrange both.
BUP lets cargo that breaks normal air pallet limits still fly. It is the right channel when the piece is urgent, valuable, or too delicate to survive a sea voyage — not when it is merely large.
| Parameter | Typical Limit | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Length per piece | Up to about 6 m | Longer pieces need a special arrangement and a specific aircraft |
| Weight per piece | Up to about 5 t | Above this, loading equipment and aircraft type become the constraint |
| Transit to ORD / LAX / JFK | 7–12 days door to door | Includes US clearance and inland delivery under DDP |
| Packing | Wooden crate or steel frame, shock and moisture protection | Nude lashing is possible for some pieces; we assess the lifting points first |
BUP is priced per shipment, not per kilo, because the cost driver is aircraft capacity and special loading rather than weight. Send the drawing and we will tell you whether it flies before you commit to packing.
For single pieces that clear the carrier's size and weight rules but exceed normal parcel limits, UPS heavy air is often cheaper and simpler than a full BUP arrangement — no charter negotiation, no special handling fee, and it tracks like a parcel.
| Parameter | Typical Limit | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Weight per piece | Up to 2,000 kg (2 t) per piece | Single pieces beyond the parcel ceiling move on UPS heavy air without charter negotiation |
| Longest side | Up to 3.9 m (about 153 in) | Very long pieces are accepted — we pre-check handling at both airports |
| Delivery | 8–12 days door delivery nationwide | Covers all US destinations; faster than sea, cheaper than BUP for pieces within limits |
| Packing | Export crate with drop protection | Must survive automated sorting equipment |
UPS applies published weight and size limits per service. Send the carton dimensions and weight and we will confirm which UPS service accepts your piece and whether a surcharge applies.
| Your Cargo | Recommended Channel | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Heavy and wide, delivery date is flexible | Sea Oversized — Flat Rack | Lowest cost per tonne; the only channel that scales past 45 t |
| Over-height but inside the container posts | Sea Oversized — Open Top | Keeps the standard container rate while clearing height that a GP cannot |
| Urgent, high value, or too delicate for a sea voyage | Air Oversized — BUP | Fastest route for genuine out-of-gauge pieces |
| One piece up to 3.9 m / 2 t, no rush inside two weeks | UPS Heavy Air | Parcel-like tracking and simpler handling than BUP |
| Multiple pieces, mixed sizes, one delivery date | Sea oversized plus Air BUP for the critical piece | We split the shipment so only the piece that has to fly, flies |
If two channels are both technically possible, the decision is almost always transit versus packing cost — not freight rate.
Looking for normal-size cargo instead? See China to USA air freight, China to USA ocean freight, or the USA DDP line overview.
| Item | When | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| ISF 10+2 filing with CBP | 24 hours before vessel loading | Applies to all ocean cargo including flat-rack and open-top |
| Customs BOND | Before arrival | Our own continuous BOND under DDP |
| Wood packaging ISPM 15 marking | Before loading | Solid-wood crates and dunnage must carry the treatment mark |
| State over-width / over-weight permit | Before US inland movement | Issued by the destination state; we arrange permits and escorts |
| Engine-related EPA declaration | Before import | Equipment or generators with engines may need an EPA declaration — we confirm against the HS code |
| Lifting point and centre-of-gravity survey | Before packing | Determines whether the piece can be nuded or must be crated |
Our oversized DDP program regularly moves four standard categories of out-of-gauge freight:
Precision instruments and industrial equipment packed in shock-absorbing, moisture-resistant wooden crates.
Touring and exhibition gear, as well as instrument cases — moved via the air BUP channel or by ocean.
Machine components and metal structures secured with custom timber framing.
Stretch-wrapped, labelled pallets, accepted for FCL, LCL or air shipments.
Every category above ships under DDP — delivered duty-paid to your door anywhere in the continental United States (all 48 states).
By UPS heavy air, up to 3.9 m and 2 t per piece with 8-12 day nationwide delivery. By air BUP, up to about 6 m and 5 t per piece. By sea flat-rack, up to about 12 m on a 40 ft frame with roughly 45 t payload, and break-bulk or heavy-lift beyond that. The real ceiling is usually the US inland leg, not the ocean voyage.
Sea if the delivery date is flexible and the piece is heavy — flat-rack is far cheaper per tonne. Air BUP if the piece is urgent, high value, or too delicate to survive weeks at sea. Send the drawing and we will price both.
Yes. Sea and air oversized both run DDP: we clear on our own US customs BOND, prepay duty, MPF and HMF, and deliver to your site. Rail and truck oversized are not offered on the US lane.
Name and description of the cargo, a photo or drawing, L×W×H in metres, weight in tonnes, number of pieces, origin, delivery address with ZIP, and whether the piece has marked lifting points.
Yes. Our own US truck fleet plus partner heavy trucks can lift to the exact spot, including truck with crane or a dock leveller where the site requires it. Tell us the access constraints — gate width, ground bearing, overhead lines — at quoting stage.
Professional lashing and supervised loading are standard, and we arrange all-risk cargo insurance on request. Because consolidated sea cargo is handled more than once, we recommend insurance on LCL and on any piece that cannot be replaced quickly.
Primarily four types — crated goods, flight-case shipments, timber-framed cargo and palletized loads — each one shipped duty-paid to the destination door.
Within 2 hours you will receive a formal transport plan and quote.
Scan to chat on WhatsApp
for a 1-on-1 plan