Deconsolidation vs consolidation: consolidation combines several shippers' cargo into one container at origin; deconsolidation splits it back into individual shipments at destination.
What is deconsolidation in shipping?
Deconsolidation, also called devanning or stripping, is the destination step of a consolidated shipment. The container, which sailed under one master bill of lading, is taken to a container freight station (CFS), unloaded, and each shipment is sorted by its marks and held under its own house bill of lading until it can be released.
How it works for an LCL import
- The container is discharged and trucked (drayed) from the terminal to the CFS. CBP allows containerized cargo to move from the place of unlading to a container station before entry, for breaking bulk and redelivery (19 CFR 19.41)
- The CFS unstuffs the container, tallies each shipment against the manifest and notes shortages or damage
- Each house-bill shipment is released once its customs entry is accepted and the destination charges are paid
- The consignee's trucker collects the cargo, or the consolidator delivers it
A CFS operates under its own CBP bond, independently of the importing carrier (19 CFR 19.40), which is why cargo can wait there unentered.
Two clocks at the CFS
- Commercial: the CFS allows a short free time, after which storage charges accrue daily
- Regulatory: merchandise landed without a release permit may stay at the place of unlading only until the fifteenth calendar day after landing (19 CFR 4.37). After that it can be sent to a general-order warehouse at the consignee's risk and expense
Why LCL shipments get stuck
The ISF, the entry and the bond apply per shipment and per house bill, not per container. If your paperwork is not ready when the container is unstuffed, your cargo waits at the CFS while the other shippers' goods leave. Filing the entry before the vessel arrives is the biggest time saver,.
Other uses of the word
An importer's own buyer's consolidation, several suppliers' goods in one full container, is deconsolidated at a general warehouse once released, often as a cross-dock move. Air consolidations are broken down the same way, each house air waybill released separately.
See LCL ocean freight for the CFS steps and cut-offs, and warehousing for deconsolidating a buyer's consolidation.
Related terms
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