Advantages or Disadvantages of IMPORT FCL (compared with LCL)

Advantages of import FCL

Advantages of import FCL Compared with LCL

1. The total transit time on

The total transit time on FCL
FCL shipments is usually
shipments is usually shorter
shorter compared with LCL
than LCL due to the process that
LCL shipments go through.
Because LCL shipments
combine multiple people’s
goods, there are additional steps
in the process on both sides
where the goods need to be
loaded and unloaded.

2. FCL is cheaper per CBM

When the goods are shipped on
with large volumes of goods
FCL, they pay a flat fee for the
use of the entire container as
opposed to paying for the
amount of space that they use.
The cost per cbm (cubic metre)
is cheaper than the cost per cbm
in LCL with large volumes of
goods. Otherwise, LCL is a more
 cost-effective way to ship small
volumes.

3. Reducing risks
With FCL, only exporters and
carriers touch the goods. FCL
shipments are loaded into a
container that is sealed and
delivered to importers
(assuming that customs don’t
stop the shipment) so there will
be few opportunities for
damage, loss and theft. LCL
shipments are handled on a few
more occasions. Therefore, the
shipments are loaded and
unloaded many times, which
makes it more likely for risks.

Disadvantages of import FCL

Disadvantages of import FCL Compared with LCL

1. Delivery options are When using FCL, delivery can

restricted and less get more complicated as the
convenient importer will be dealing with
large shipments in a small
window of time and it will be
 expensive if the importer has
special requirements, for
example, goods are dropped to
the ground. But in LCL, due to
the size of shipment, the
importer can have many options
of transportations to meet their
needs and minimize the risks
and costs.

2. Delivery appointments The waiting time for a delivery

appointment to deliver an FCL
container to fulfillment
warehouse takes a longer time
for approval compared to an LCL
shipment because the overall
size of LCL container is not as
large as a full container’s volume

3. FCL requires specific With FCL, they need to ship a

volumes certain volume to make it a
viable option for their business.
On the other hand, LCL is very
flexible at importing an amount
of stock depending on the
importer’s demand, especially
appreciated for a small or start-
up business.
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