Why the Crate Matters More Than the Truck
Most shipping damage doesn't happen on the highway. It happens during loading, at the dock, on the forklift, and in the elevator. A painting wrapped in bubble wrap, a lab instrument in its original retail box, or an antique table in moving blankets has almost nothing protecting it once it leaves your hands. It gets worse if something breaks: carriers routinely push back on damage claims when the packaging wasn't adequate for the item, and declared-value coverage has limits you only discover after the fact. Our cargo insurance and damage claims guide explains how that plays out. Custom crating services close that gap. The item is measured, braced and enclosed in a crate built for its size, weight and fragility, so every handler along the way is moving a solid box, not a fragile object.
Xentra Transport provides custom crating and shipping for businesses and collectors across New York City, New Jersey, Long Island, Westchester and Connecticut. The difference from a standalone crating company is that the crate and the delivery are one job: we crate it, load it and deliver it ourselves, locally or to the terminal for a long-haul, air or ocean shipment. Galleries use it for artwork headed to collectors and art fairs; labs and IT teams for instruments and servers; manufacturers for machinery and parts; and importers and exporters for freight that has to meet international packaging rules. Related services: art delivery, white glove delivery, freight delivery and our guide on how to ship fragile items same day.
Every crating job starts with the item, not the box. Custom shipping crates are only as good as the measurements behind them. We take dimensions, weight and center of gravity, note the fragile points (glass faces, protruding parts, delicate finishes), and ask where it's going and how. A sculpture going across town needs different protection than a machine going overseas. From there we pick the construction: custom wooden crates with interior bracing for heavy or high-value pieces; open-frame crates and skids for machinery that needs forklift access and doesn't need full enclosure; A-frame crates for glass, mirrors, stone slabs and framed art that must travel upright; foam-lined and cushioned crates for instruments and electronics; and travel frames and soft-pack for artwork that's fragile but not heavy. Each crate is labeled with orientation, handling and contents markings, and photographed before it closes, so you have a record of the item's condition at packing. Heavy crates load on box trucks with liftgates, which matters for the many NYC buildings with no loading dock. See how liftgate delivery works and Sprinter van vs box truck.
Export crating has one hard rule: solid wood packaging headed overseas generally must meet ISPM-15, the international standard requiring heat-treated or fumigated lumber stamped with the IPPC mark. Crates that don't comply can be held, treated or refused at the destination port. Export shipments also have to line up with forwarders, terminals and paperwork. We handle the local end: crate to spec, then deliver to JFK air cargo, Newark (EWR) air cargo or the Port Newark marine terminals, or hand off to your forwarder through our freight forwarding services, international courier service and next flight out programs. For domestic crate shipping, the crate's dimensions and weight set your freight cost. Our guides to dimensional weight, freight class (NMFC), the bill of lading and LTL vs FTL freight walk through the math. Local crate-to-door delivery runs on the same dispatch as every other Xentra job, with live tracking and photo proof of delivery.
Art galleries, auction houses and collectors. Fine art crating for paintings, works on paper, sculpture and installations moving between galleries in Chelsea, the Lower East Side and Tribeca, auction houses and collectors on the Upper East Side, and private residences across the tri-state. That includes art fair and exhibition shipments, consignments to auction, and sold works headed to buyers. See our art galleries and auction houses page and the gallery and studio art shipping guide. Antiques, furniture and high-value goods. Antique case pieces, marble tops, chandeliers, mirrors and designer furniture that can't ride in blankets alone, delivered through our white glove service. Jewelry, watches and small high-value items go through high-value goods handling and our guide to shipping jewelry and high-value items.
Lab, medical and IT equipment. Analyzers, microscopes, imaging components and servers moving between labs, hospitals, data rooms and offices, crated against shock and moisture. See healthcare and labs, how to ship IT equipment and servers and office equipment pickup and delivery. Machinery, parts and industrial freight. Skidded and crated machines, molds and heavy components for manufacturers, distributors and importers and exporters, moving through Secaucus, Newark, Elizabeth and Long Island City. Trade shows, production and events. Reusable crates for exhibits, displays and production gear that ship out, get set up and come back, handled through trade show delivery, the booth delivery guide and production equipment delivery. Long-distance crate shipping. Crated freight leaving the tri-state on our New York to Philadelphia, New York to Boston, New York to Miami and New York to Los Angeles routes, and the full route network. For a starting estimate, try the pricing calculator, or contact dispatch with dimensions and photos for a crating quote.
