Steel and Metals Logistics

Steel punishes sloppy planning more than almost any other cargo. It is dense, so a container reaches its weight limit long before it looks full. It rusts, so a few days of condensation can turn a saleable coil into a claim. It is awkward, so a load that was fine on paper turns into a problem when the vehicle reaches a yard with no crane. Nostrac Shipping moves steel and non ferrous metals for mills, stockholders, fabricators and traders, and the value we add sits in the detail: how the cargo is secured, how the weight is distributed, how the paperwork lines up with the material, and what happens at the delivery end. Get those right and steel is a straightforward, repeatable movement.

What We Move and How It Travels

The product form decides the equipment, not the other way round:

• Hot and cold rolled coil — Shipped eye to sky or eye to side depending on weight, handling equipment at both ends and the receiver's preference. Coils need cradles or timber bedding and dedicated lashing, because a coil that shifts once will keep moving.
• Plate and sheet — Bundled and dunnaged so the load spreads across the container floor rather than concentrating in one place. Long plate often travels on flat racks where a standard box would mean cutting or excess handling.
• Sections, beams and long products — Beams, angles, channels and rail lengths that exceed internal container length go on flat racks or in breakbulk parcels. We check the receiving site for lifting capacity before booking the equipment.
• Bar, wire rod and tube — Bundled cargo that travels well in containers if the bundles are tight and the weight is spread. Loose or badly banded bundles are the usual cause of damage in transit.
• Non ferrous metals — Aluminium, copper and brass in ingot, billet, coil or cathode form. Higher value per tonne, so security at the transit points and accurate weight records matter more.
• Scrap and secondary material — Baled or loose scrap in containers or bulk parcels, with the loading and documentation discipline the trade expects on both origin and destination side.

Where Steel Shipments Go Wrong

Five failure points account for most of the trouble we are asked to fix:

• Weight before volume — A container has a payload limit and the road leg has its own axle and gross weight limits. A box loaded to the shipping line's maximum can still be illegal on the delivery road move. We plan the loading pattern against the road limits in the destination country, not only against the container rating.
• Condensation — Warm coastal loading followed by a cool passage produces water inside the container, and it lands on the cargo. Desiccant, liner bags, VCI wrapping or oiled surfaces are chosen according to the material, the route and how long the box will sit before it is opened.
• Poor securing — Steel that moves in transit damages itself, the container and sometimes the vehicle. A securing plan with cradles, timber, chocking and adequate lashing is cheap compared with a rejected coil.
• Paperwork that does not match the material — Mill test certificates, heat numbers and bundle marks need to match the packing list and the invoice. Where they do not, the receiver's goods in team stops the delivery, and the cargo sits.
• Delivery sites without the right equipment — Stockholders usually have overhead cranes. Construction sites and small fabricators often do not. We confirm what is available and specify a vehicle with a crane, or a side loader, before dispatch rather than sending a driver to find out.

How We Plan a Steel Movement

The sequence we follow on every enquiry:

• Cargo detail first — Product form, dimensions, weight per piece and per bundle, packing method and the value. That determines the equipment and the securing plan before anyone quotes.
• Equipment and mode — Container, flat rack, open top or a breakbulk parcel, based on the pieces rather than on habit. Container services give frequency and simpler handling. Breakbulk suits long, heavy or high volume parcels where a box would mean cutting the product.
• Protection specification — Agreed in writing with the shipper so it is applied at the mill, where it is effective, rather than attempted at the port.
• Loading supervision — For high value or claim sensitive shipments we arrange supervision and photographs at loading, which settles most disputes before they become claims.
• Delivery planning — Access, offloading equipment, opening hours and any restriction on vehicle size, confirmed with the receiver in advance.

Related Services

• Container options as FCL sea freight or consolidated LCL sea freight
• Oversized, heavy and out of gauge pieces through project cargo and heavy lift
• Structural steel and materials feeding a build programme on our construction logistics page
• Declarations and procedures handled by our UK customs clearance team

Frequently Asked Questions

How much steel can I load in a 40ft container?

In practice the payload limit is reached well before the space is. Dense products such as coil, plate and bar hit the maximum permitted weight with the container looking part empty, and a 20ft box is often the better unit for heavy material. The real constraint is usually the road leg at destination, because a container that is legal at sea can be over the axle limits on the truck. We work backwards from the delivery country's road limits when we plan the loading.

How do you stop rust and condensation damage?

By deciding the protection at the loading point, not at the port. Depending on the material and the route that means desiccant bags sized to the container volume, a liner or barrier bag, VCI paper or film in contact with the surface, oiled or coated finishes, and timber dunnage so the cargo is not sitting against a cold steel floor. The other half of it is timing: cargo that sits in a container for weeks after arrival is far more exposed than cargo that is cleared and unloaded promptly.

Can you ship lengths that will not fit in a container?

Yes. Anything beyond internal container length goes on a flat rack, an open top or as a breakbulk parcel on a suitable vessel. We need the exact length, width, height, weight and lifting points, and we confirm what can be received at the delivery site. It is normally cheaper to move a long product properly once than to cut it and lose value at the far end.

Do you handle coil loading and securing, or does the mill?

The mill or the loading warehouse does the physical work, but we specify how it is done and we put it in writing before the vehicle arrives. That covers orientation, cradles or bedding, chocking and the number and type of lashings. Where the shipment is high value or the receiver is strict on condition, we arrange supervision and photographic records at loading.

What documents travel with a steel shipment?

Commercial invoice, packing list with bundle marks and weights, the transport document, and mill test certificates with heat numbers where the buyer or the end use requires them. Certificates of origin are often needed as well. The important part is consistency, because a heat number on a certificate that does not appear on the packing list will stop the goods at the receiver's gate.

Can you deliver to a site with no crane?

Yes, with the right vehicle. That means a crane mounted vehicle, a side loader for containers, or a vehicle that can tip or roll the load off, selected against the piece weight and the ground conditions. We ask about access, hardstanding and offloading equipment at the quotation stage because it changes the vehicle and the price.

Which lanes do you cover for steel and metals?

Regular movements between the United Kingdom and Europe, Turkey, the Middle East and the United Arab Emirates, plus Asian origins and the Central Asian corridors through Kazakhstan where we have an established presence. Tell us the origin mill or port and the delivery point and we will set out the realistic options with the transit time for each.

Talk to Nostrac about your requirements and we will tell you what is realistic before you commit to it.

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