DELIVERY
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Drayage is short-distance freight transport, and at a trade show it means the move from the loading dock into the exhibit hall and onto your stand.
Most exhibitors meet the word for the first time on an invoice, usually attached to a number larger than they expected. It is one of the few show costs that is almost entirely predictable in advance, provided you know what it covers.
What Drayage Actually Covers
Your carrier delivers to the venue. It does not carry your crates onto the show floor.
That last leg belongs to the show’s general contractor, and drayage is what they charge for it. In practice it covers a specific list of tasks.
- Unloading your freight at the dock or the marshalling yard
- Moving it from the dock to your assigned booth space
- Storing your empty crates somewhere off the floor during the show
- Returning those empties to your booth at move-out
- Moving the repacked freight back to the dock for your outbound carrier
You are paying for material handling inside the building, not for transport between cities. That distinction is the source of most of the confusion.
How Drayage Is Priced
Drayage is billed by weight, in hundredweight, written as CWT. One CWT is 100 pounds.
Shows publish a rate per CWT with a minimum charge, and the minimum is usually 200 to 300 pounds. A 90 pound crate is therefore billed as if it weighed the minimum.
Several things push the rate up from the base figure:
- Special handling. Freight that is not on a pallet, is stacked oddly, or needs to be unloaded piece by piece.
- Overtime. Move-in or move-out landing outside standard hours, including weekends.
- Late delivery. Arriving outside your target window, when one has been assigned.
- Uncrated freight. Loose or unboxed items, which take longer to move safely.
Round your weight up when you plan the budget. The scale at the dock is the one that counts, not the one in your warehouse.
Advance Warehouse or Direct to Show
Every show gives you two ways to send freight, and they are billed differently.
Advance warehouse means your freight arrives at a facility weeks before the show, is held there, and is delivered to your booth before you arrive. It costs more per CWT and it is the lower-risk option, because a problem surfaces while there is still time to fix it.
Direct to show means your freight arrives at the venue during move-in, in a narrow window assigned to you. It is cheaper and it is unforgiving. Miss the window and you may wait hours, or pay overtime, or both.
For a first show, or a booth you cannot rebuild, the advance warehouse is worth the premium. For a small shipment you have sent a dozen times, direct is usually fine.
What Drayage Does Not Cover
Drayage stops at the edge of your booth space. It is not the same as any of the following, each billed separately.
- Transport to the venue. That is your carrier, and it is where a trade show logistics service comes in.
- Installation and dismantle. Building the stand is labor, ordered by the hour.
- Rigging. Anything hung from the ceiling needs the venue’s rigging crew.
- Utilities. Power, internet, and water are ordered from the venue.
Reading the Exhibitor Kit
Everything above is set out in the exhibitor kit, sometimes called the exhibitor manual, which the general contractor sends after you book your space.
Four numbers in it decide your cost and your stress level:
- The advance warehouse deadline, normally two to three weeks before the show
- Your target move-in date and time window
- The drayage rate per CWT and the minimum weight
- The move-out deadline for carrier pickup, after which the show may force-ship your freight
That last one catches people. If your carrier has not collected by the deadline, the show hands your freight to its own carrier at its own price.
How to Keep the Bill Down
Drayage is hard to avoid and easy to reduce.
Palletize and shrink-wrap everything you can, because loose pieces are billed as special handling. Consolidate into fewer, heavier crates rather than many light ones, since each shipment can attract its own minimum.
Ship anything you can carry, such as literature and giveaways, separately to your hotel. Weigh your freight before it leaves and label every piece with the show name, booth number, and your company name.
Then book your transport around the window rather than the date. A carrier that understands show deadlines will plan the pickup backward from your target time, which is exactly how our trade show logistics team schedules a move-in.
Port Drayage Is a Different Job
Search for drayage outside the events industry and you will mostly find port drayage, which is a separate business.
That version moves ocean containers between a port, a rail yard, and a nearby warehouse. It needs drayage tractors, chassis, and port credentials, and around Los Angeles and Long Beach it is an industry of its own.
The two share a name because both are short-haul moves at the end of a longer journey. If you arrived here looking for container haulage from the ports, that is the trade you want, and it is not the same as trade show material handling.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is drayage at a trade show?
Drayage at a trade show is the handling of your freight between the venue’s loading dock and your booth space. It is performed by the show’s general contractor, not by your carrier, and it covers unloading, delivery to your stand, storage of empty crates during the show, and the reverse at move-out. It is billed by weight, separately from the cost of transporting your exhibit to the venue.
How much does trade show drayage cost?
Trade show drayage is priced per hundredweight, with most shows setting a minimum of 200 to 300 pounds. Rates vary by venue and city, and surcharges apply for uncrated freight, special handling, overtime hours, and deliveries that miss their assigned window. Because the minimum applies to small shipments, a light crate often costs the same as a much heavier one.
Can I avoid drayage fees?
You cannot avoid drayage entirely, because the general contractor controls the floor and no outside crew may move freight into the hall. You can reduce it. Palletize your freight, consolidate into fewer crates, hand carry small items where the show permits it, and hit your target window so overtime and late fees are never triggered.
What is the difference between drayage and shipping?
Shipping is the long-haul move from your warehouse to the venue city. Drayage is the short move inside the venue, from the dock to your booth and back. Two different providers usually handle them, they are invoiced separately, and confusing the two is the most common reason an exhibit budget comes in over.
What is an advance warehouse?
An advance warehouse is a facility that accepts your exhibit freight in the weeks before a show, holds it, and delivers it to your booth ahead of your arrival. It costs more per hundredweight than shipping direct to the venue, and it removes most of the timing risk, because a problem is discovered while there is still time to solve it.
Getting Your Exhibit There On Time
Drayage is the general contractor’s job. Everything either side of it is ours.
Worldline Express collects your exhibit, holds it in advance storage where you need it, and delivers to the show site inside your assigned window across Los Angeles and Orange County. Send us the exhibitor kit when you book and we will plan the run backward from your deadline.
You can place a delivery order online or call (213) 868-3348 to talk a show through with dispatch.
