# Build the consol, make the cutoff, recover it on time.

> Roadmark holds every house air waybill against its master, works out chargeable weight and margin for each, and follows it through screening and the flight.

URL: https://roadmark.ai/air-freight
Language: en

Roadmark holds every house air waybill against its master, works out chargeable weight and margin for each one, and follows the shipment from tender to the airline through screening, the flight and recovery at the other end.

## Airlines charge for whichever is bigger: the scale or the space.

A shipment's volumetric weight treats it as if it were packed at a standard density: length times width times height in centimetres, divided by 6,000. Whichever comes out higher, the actual weight on the scale or that volumetric figure, is what the airline bills as chargeable weight.

- **Dense cargo** like drums or machinery is usually billed on actual weight.
- **Light, bulky cargo** like furniture or fixtures is usually billed on volumetric weight.

## The flight is under two hours of a thirty-hour move.

Times come from the airline's own status messages for this MAWB, matched automatically against tendered, departed, arrived and ready for pickup, so nobody has to call the ramp to ask.

## One truck, four consignees, off the cargo terminal floor.

Once the shipment is ready for pickup, the Planning agent assigns a truck to recover it from the cargo terminal and works out the stop order for delivery. It's the same planning that drives a truckload run, just starting from an airport door instead of a dock door.

## Checked before it's tendered, not after.

Roadmark holds a shipment back from tender until its screening and dangerous goods checks are complete and recorded against the HAWB. General checks shown here; your station's actual requirements depend on the airline and the regulator.

- Shipper's declaration for dangerous goods reviewed, where one applies
- Known shipper status confirmed in the airline's system for every piece
- Piece count and weight on the HAWB matched to what's on the scale
- Screening complete, by X-ray or in person, with proof kept on file
- Lithium battery marking and paperwork checked against the airline's variation
- Security declaration attached to the MAWB before tender

## Questions about the consol.

- **How does Roadmark calculate chargeable weight?** It takes the greater of the actual weight on the scale and the volumetric weight, length times width times height in centimetres divided by 6,000, the same rule airlines use to bill. Dense cargo like drums or machinery is usually billed on actual weight; light, bulky cargo like furniture is usually billed on volumetric weight.
- **How does Roadmark handle consolidations?** Each house air waybill is billed on its own chargeable weight, while the airline bills the whole consolidation the same way. Dense freight fills the space bulky freight leaves, and that difference is the forwarder's margin on the flight.
- **How is a shipment tracked between tender and delivery?** Times come from the airline's own status messages for the master air waybill, matched automatically against tendered, departed, arrived and ready for pickup, so nobody has to call the ramp to ask.
- **Does Roadmark plan airport recovery and final delivery?** Yes. Once a shipment is ready for pickup, a truck is assigned to recover it from the cargo terminal and the stop order for delivery is worked out, the same planning used for a truckload run, just starting from an airport door instead of a dock door.
- **What screening checks happen before a shipment is tendered?** Roadmark holds a shipment back from tender until its screening and dangerous goods checks, the shipper's declaration, known shipper status, piece count and weight matched to the scale, screening complete, lithium battery paperwork and the security declaration, are complete and recorded against the house air waybill.

## Related pages

- [Chargeable weight calculator](https://roadmark.ai/tools/chargeable-weight): Actual against volumetric weight for an air shipment, at IATA's 6,000 cm³/kg or 166 in³/lb, line by line.
- [Quoting and CRM](https://roadmark.ai/quoting): Customers, lanes, rates and RFQs
- [Billing and settlements](https://roadmark.ai/billing): Invoices, driver pay and carrier pay
- [Ocean freight](https://roadmark.ai/ocean-freight): Containers, cutoffs and demurrage

Companies, people and shipment figures in product examples are fictional. They illustrate workflows and are not customer testimonials or measured results.