Sea or air: deciding by weight and downtime cost
The decision is rarely about freight price alone — it is about the cost of machine downtime. A filter shipment that keeps a mining fleet running can justify air freight many times over, while a planned overhaul kit ordered a season ahead belongs on sea freight. As a rule of thumb, parts above a few hundred kilograms or with steel structures go by sea; urgent electronics, seals and injectors fly.
Export packing that survives the trip
African-bound cargo often faces multiple handlings, humid ports and rough inland roads. Proper export packing means fumigated or plywood crates, rust-prevention oil and VCI film on machined surfaces, sealed bags for electronics, and heavy parts bolted or blocked inside the crate so they cannot shift. Photos of the packed crate before sealing should be part of every shipment.
Documents your customs broker will ask for
A standard parts shipment needs a commercial invoice with accurate HS codes, a packing list matching the crate contents, and the bill of lading or air waybill. Depending on the destination country you may also need a certificate of origin and a pre-shipment inspection or conformity certificate. Aligning invoice descriptions with what customs officers can physically verify in the crate avoids most clearance delays.
Controlling cost per shipment
The biggest savings come from consolidation: collecting parts from several suppliers into one crate, one set of documents and one clearance. Second is planning order cycles around sea freight lead times so air freight becomes the exception. Third is right-sizing crates — volumetric weight drives LCL and air pricing, so compact packing directly cuts cost.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does sea freight take from China to West Africa?
Port-to-port commonly runs four to seven weeks depending on the route and transshipment. Add inland clearance and trucking time for door delivery. East African ports are usually faster than West African ones.
Can small urgent parts be combined with a sea shipment?
A split strategy works better: fly the urgent items now and put the rest on the next consolidated sea crate. Holding urgent parts for consolidation usually costs more in downtime than the air freight saves.