Cloth, Dry Goods, Fabrics or Textiles

What is Freight Class?

Freight class is a standard classification system for shipments, defined by the National Motor Freight Traffic Association (NMFTA). It's used to categorize commodities like Cloth, Dry Goods, Fabrics or Textiles for transport, taking into account factors like weight, dimensions, density, storage capability, ease of handling, and liability. Freight class is a system to categorize different types of goods being shipped.

How to determine Freight Class

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Density

Density is a key concept in freight shipping, as it significantly impacts the freight class for commodities like Cloth, Dry Goods, Fabrics or Textiles and hence, the shipping cost. It is calculated as the weight of the shipment divided by its volume. Density is a concept used in freight shipping to determine the cost of transporting goods.

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STOWABILITY

Stowability is used in freight shipping to describe how easily an item can be stowed or stored in relation to other items. For example, when trying to understand stowability for Cloth, Dry Goods, Fabrics or Textiles, it is important to know if the item can be packaged efficiently and stowed onto the truck easily. In other words- It's an assessment of how well a shipment can be loaded onto a trailer.

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LIABILITY

Liability is a term used to refer to the accountability or risk involved in transporting Cloth, Dry Goods, Fabrics or Textiles. It's one of the factors considered when determining freight class. It's the responsibility for the condition of goods during transportation.

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HANDLING

Handling refers to the procedures and precautions taken when moving and storing Cloth, Dry Goods, Fabrics or Textiles. It is one of the factors considered when determining freight class for Cloth, Dry Goods, Fabrics or Textiles. It's the actions involved in moving and storing goods safely.

Freight Class Commodities

Tips

Blankets NOI

Cloth Fabric

Cloth Or Fabric Cotton

Dry Goods Or Textiles NOI

Fabric

Synthetic Fiber

Tape Glass Fiber

Wipes Nonwoven Fiber Disposable

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85

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85

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Garment interlining, in the original piece, cotton and synthetic fiber combined with goat hair, in wrapped rolls

Woven or not woven; with or without binder or paper backing, in boxes or wrapped rolls

Common Commodity Items

Classes

NMFC® SUBCLASSES

For many NMFC® codes there isn’t just one single class that is applied. Often, NMFC® numbers have multiple "sub-classes", which are almost always based on the density of the shipment. In the instance where your NMFC® number has multiple sub classes, it's best to contact an expert, like Koho, to help identify which subclass to use.

FAQs

What is freight hsn code?

HSN stands for Harmonized System of Nomenclature. It is a system for classifying commodities created by the World Customs organization. U.S. LTL shipping, however, uses NMFC classifications instead.

Is an NMFC code required?

Adding NMFC code to a shipment is technically optional, but the NMFC codes can help avoid reclassification and ensure you're using the correct freight class number.