Equipment Types
Terminology Basics
Acronyms
Freight & Ops Lingo
100

This enclosed trailer is ideal for palletized dry goods loaded with forklifts or pallet jacks.

Dry Van

100

This term means driving a truck without a trailer attached.

Bobtail

100

BOL

Bill of Lading

100

This person or company serves as the liaison between a customer and a carrier.

Broker

200

This trailer keeps temperature-sensitive cargo cold (or warm) throughout transit.

Reefer

200

This document, signed at delivery, lists the goods from the originating facility and proves delivery.

Bill of Lading (BOL)

200

OTR

Over The Road

200

This term describes a shipment that has a carrier already assigned.

Covered

300

This open-deck trailer is built for long, heavy, or irregularly shaped cargo loaded from the top, side, or rear.

Flatbed

300

This is the term for driving distance with no freight loaded on the trailer.

Deadhead

300

FMCSA

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

300

This third-party worker charges a fee to load or unload freight at a facility.

Lumper

400

Also called a "drop deck," this dual-level trailer legally hauls cargo up to 10 feet tall.

Step Deck

400

This charge is paid to a driver who waits more than 2 hours to be loaded or unloaded at a facility.

Detention

400

TONU

Truck Ordered Not Used

400

This number identifies a carrier authorized to haul regulated commodities across state lines.

MC Number

500

With upper, lower, and well decks, this trailer is the heavyweight champion of oversized freight, legally hauling up to 12 feet high.

Double Drop (Low Boy)

500

This term describes matching a carrier with a new shipment right after they deliver in the same area.

Reload

500

LTL

Less Than Truckload

500

This term means freight is offloaded from one trailer and loaded straight onto another, with no storage involved.

Cross Dock

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