Warehouse Management & 3PL Glossary

An air waybill (AWB) is a non-negotiable transport document that accompanies goods shipped by air....

ABC inventory analysis is a classification method that ranks stock into three tiers — A, B, and C — by...

Annual holding cost (or carrying cost) is the total yearly expense of storing unsold inventory,...

An arrival notice is a document a carrier or agent sends to the consignee to announce that an inbound...

Assemble-to-order (ATO) builds finished goods from pre-made components only once a customer order...

A bill of lading (BOL) is a legal document issued by a carrier to a shipper that acts as a receipt for...

A blank sailing is when an ocean carrier cancels a scheduled voyage or skips a port on its route....

A bobtail fee is a charge applied when a truck driver operates the tractor without a loaded trailer...

A bonded warehouse is a secured facility where imported goods can be stored under customs supervision...

Case picking is an order-fulfillment method where full cases or cartons of a product — rather than...

A container yard (CY) is a designated area at or near a port where shipping containers are received,...

Countervailing duties (CVDs) are import tariffs imposed to offset subsidies that a foreign government...

A customs assigned importer number is an identifier U.S. Customs and Border Protection issues to...

Demurrage is a fee charged when cargo or a container sits at a port or terminal beyond the allotted free...

Devanning is the process of unloading cargo from a shipping container after it arrives at a warehouse or...

Direct store delivery (DSD) is a distribution method where suppliers deliver products straight to retail...

A double blind shipment is a delivery in which neither the buyer nor the supplier knows the other's...

Drayage is the short-distance transport of freight, especially moving shipping containers between a...

Economic order quantity (EOQ) is the ideal order size that minimizes the combined cost of ordering and...

An export declaration is a document filed with customs authorities that reports goods leaving a country....

First in, first out (FIFO) is an inventory method where the oldest stock is sold or used before newer...

A free trade zone (FTZ) is a designated area where goods can be imported, stored, handled, and...

Fulfillment services are third-party operations that store a company's inventory and pick, pack, and...

Full truckload (FTL) is a freight-shipping mode where a single shipment fills an entire truck trailer....

A goods receipt note (GRN) is a document created when a warehouse receives inbound goods, confirming...

Gross weight is the total weight of a shipment including the product, its packaging, and any pallets or...

The harbor maintenance fee (HMF) is a U.S. federal charge on imported cargo that moves through certain...

A hazmat suit is protective clothing worn to shield workers from hazardous materials such as chemicals,...

Incoterms (International Commercial Terms) are standardized trade rules published by the International...

Inventory turnover is a ratio that measures how many times a business sells and replaces its stock over...

The Jones Act is a U.S. law requiring goods shipped between American ports to travel on vessels that are...

Just-in-time (JIT) inventory is a strategy where materials and stock arrive only as they're needed for...

A kanban inventory system uses visual signals — cards, bins, or digital cues — to trigger restocking...

Kitting is the process of grouping individual items into a single ready-to-ship package or SKU....

Last-mile delivery is the final step of the shipping journey, moving a package from a local hub to the...

Lead time is the total time between placing an order and receiving it. In inventory management,...

The merchandise processing fee (MPF) is a U.S. Customs charge on most imported goods, calculated as a...

Minimum order quantity (MOQ) is the smallest amount of a product a supplier is willing to sell in a...

Net 60 payment terms mean the buyer has 60 days from the invoice date to pay in full. These terms give...

Net weight is the weight of the goods alone, while gross weight includes the goods plus all packaging,...

Omnichannel fulfillment is the practice of fulfilling orders from a single, unified inventory pool...

Order fulfillment is the end-to-end process of receiving, processing, picking, packing, and shipping...

Pick and pack is a fulfillment method where workers select ordered items from storage (pick) and prepare...

Procurement is the process of sourcing, negotiating, and purchasing the goods and services a business...

A purchase order (PO) is a formal document a buyer sends a supplier to authorize a purchase, specifying...

Quality control (QC) is the process of inspecting goods to ensure they meet defined standards before...