Trade show drayage, also called material handling, is the charge the show’s official contractor bills for moving your freight between the loading dock and your booth. It is separate from what you pay a carrier to reach the venue. This guide explains how it is calculated, what recent exhibitor kits at Southern California venues charged, the venue and marshaling rules that change the bill, and how to pay less. Every venue rate below comes from a published exhibitor kit, named with its year.
How does trade show drayage work?
At a convention center, the show’s general contractor (Freeman, GES, Shepard and other exhibition service companies) usually runs the docks. A 2024 Los Angeles Convention Center kit puts it plainly: the contractor “has the responsibility of receiving and handling all exhibit materials and empty crates” and manages the docks and the truck schedule (Expo Event Services, 2024). The same kit notes that convention centers are governed by union labor, and the Teamsters claim the unloading of freight, its movement to and from storage and the operation of forklifts.
So the chain for one booth looks like this:
- Your carrier delivers to the advance warehouse, or to the marshaling yard for direct delivery.
- The truck is called from the yard to a dock. The contractor’s crew unloads it and takes the freight to your booth.
- Empty crates go to storage during the show and come back at move-out.
- At move-out the crew takes the packed freight back to the dock and loads your outbound carrier.
You pay for that whole round trip once. The 2024 kit says: “Any materials coming in/out from loading dock are required to be weighed. All materials will be charged a Material Handling Fee. Fee is round trip.”
How is drayage calculated?
By weight, per shipment, in hundredweight: CWT, or 100 lb.
- Weight. Charges “are based on the weight of the freight,” and certified weight receipts are required. Without one, the contractor estimates the weight of a private vehicle’s load, and “no adjustments can be made” (Expo Event Services, 2024). The invoice uses the actual weight, not your estimate.
- Rounding. Weight is usually rounded up to the next 100 lb. Rules differ: GES at the 2019 Los Angeles Auto Show rounded up only when the weight was more than 8 lb over the previous 100 (GES, 2019).
- Minimum. Each shipment pays at least a minimum weight. Freeman’s Advanced Textiles Expo 2024 kit in Anaheim says “Shipments are subject to a 200lb minimum charge” (Freeman, Advanced Textiles Expo 2024); GES set 300 lb at the 2019 Auto Show.
- Category. Crated freight (skidded, or in any container that can be unloaded at the dock) gets the base rate. Special handling covers loads that take extra work: ground unloading from a truck that is not dock height, constricted space, stacked or mixed loads and shipments without bills of lading. Uncrated freight (loose, pad-wrapped or unskidded machinery) usually costs the most, and contractors group the categories differently: the 2024 Expo Event Services kit prices crated, skidded and special handling together, and the 2019 GES kit prices special handling and uncrated together. Freeman counts a load as mixed when less than half of it by volume is uncrated (Freeman material handling form, 2017).
- Time. Straight time at the 2019 GES show was Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM; overtime was “all other times, Saturdays, Sundays and Holidays.” Rates are quoted as ST/ST, ST/OT and OT/OT, usually read as the time in, then the time out (the kits we read do not define the abbreviations).
- Surcharges. Late arrival (30% in the 2024 Los Angeles kit), off-target delivery, loose freight sent to the warehouse (a 50% surcharge in the same kit) and small-package rates for light cartons.
A worked example at the 2024 Los Angeles Convention Center rate of $235 per CWT, straight time in and overtime out: a 1,200 lb crated shipment is 12 CWT, so 12 x $235 = $2,820 for the round trip. If it arrives late, the 30% late-arrival surcharge brings it to $3,666. The same freight split into three separate shipments, each with its own bill of lading, is billed as three shipments, with a minimum and a separate rounding on each. That kit states that multiple pieces must be “crated/palleted and shrink wrapped to be charged as one shipment.”
What do Southern California shows charge for material handling?
Rates are set per show, not per venue, and the kit for your show is the only price that counts. These are the published Southern California rates we could read in exhibitor kits; the Freeman and GES kit pages we read keep their current rate tables inside their ordering portals.
| Show, contractor, venue | How it is billed | Rate | Minimum |
|---|---|---|---|
| LA Travel and Adventure Show 2024, Expo Event Services, Los Angeles Convention Center | Per CWT, same rate for advance warehouse or direct | $235 (ST/OT), $275 (OT/OT); small package $95 first carton, $25 each after | $470 at ST/OT |
| Los Angeles Auto Show 2019, GES, Los Angeles Convention Center | Per CWT, warehouse dearer than direct | Common carrier $50.25 warehouse, $38.75 direct (ST/ST); special handling or uncrated $65.33 and $50.38; marshaling yard $47.75 per shipment | 300 lb |
| NAMM Show 2027, Freeman, Anaheim Convention Center | Per pound over an allowance | 1,000 lb free per 100 sq ft of booth, then $1.55 per lb; 10 lb and under free if received the same day from the same shipper by the same carrier | Not stated |
| LA Comic Con 2026, Freeman (per the page’s rates link), Los Angeles Convention Center | Per pallet over an allotment | One 4 x 6 ft pallet free per 100 sq ft, then $195 per pallet | Not stated |
| Anime Expo 2026, Shepard, Los Angeles Convention Center | Included | “complimentary and no additional cost to exhibitors” | n/a (complimentary) |
| GCSAA Conference 2025, Freeman, San Diego Convention Center | Show site included; warehouse billed | Show-site handling complimentary; warehouse at “the prevailing material handling rate” | Not stated |
| Natural Products Expo West 2024, GES, Anaheim Convention Center | Per pound | Rate not shown on the public kit page | Flat rate under 25 lb |
Three things stand out. First, the same building can cost very different amounts: the 2019 Auto Show and the 2024 Travel and Adventure Show were both at the Los Angeles Convention Center, more than four years and a different contractor apart. Second, some Southern California shows now fold handling into the booth price (Anime Expo, NAMM’s allowance, Comic Con’s pallet), so a quote that assumes CWT can overstate the bill. Third, where the warehouse and direct rates differ, the warehouse costs more: about 30% more for common-carrier freight at the 2019 Auto Show.
Advance warehouse or direct to show: which costs less?
The advance warehouse receives your freight weeks ahead and has it waiting at your booth when you arrive. Direct delivery sends the truck to the marshaling yard on your target move-in time. The trade-offs are written into the kits:
| Show | Advance warehouse receives | Show site receives | Opens |
|---|---|---|---|
| LA Travel and Adventure Show 2024 (Los Angeles) | Jan 5 to Jan 25, 2024 | Feb 1 and 2, 2024 | Feb 3, 2024 |
| Advanced Textiles Expo 2024 (Anaheim) | From Aug 20; late charge after Sept 13, 2024 | From Sept 22, 2024 | Sept 24, 2024 |
| GCSAA Conference 2025 (San Diego) | From Jan 2; late charge after Jan 24, 2025 | Per the move-in schedule | Feb 5, 2025 |
| Natural Products Expo West 2024 (Anaheim) | Feb 15 to Mar 7, 2024 | Refrigerated and frozen freight direct from Mar 11; no other direct dates listed | Mar 14, 2024 |
| NAMM Show 2027 (Anaheim) | From Dec 18, 2026 | From Jan 22, 2027 | Jan 28, 2027 |
In the four kits with a warehouse cutoff, the cutoff fell 7 to 12 days before opening day; NAMM’s Jan 15, 2027 date, which carries no late charge, was 13 days before. Other rules to plan around:
- The warehouse only takes packaged freight. “The Advance Warehouse will ONLY accept packaged shipments, including crates, boxes and skids,” and loose freight pays a 50% surcharge (Expo Event Services, 2024). Freeman’s warehouse does not accept a single piece over 5,000 lb or larger than 108 in. high by 93 in. wide in the 2024 and 2025 kits; the NAMM 2027 limit is 4,500 lb and 108 x 93 x 144 in. (GCSAA 2025).
- The warehouse may not be near the venue. Freeman’s warehouse for that 2025 San Diego show was in Anaheim, open Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM.
- Anaheim will not hold early freight. The convention center is “unable to accept and store advance exhibitor freight” outside move-in times, so send it to the contractor’s warehouse or deliver on your slot (Western Event Service, 2026).
- Direct delivery runs on a target time. Move-in times “depend on the location of your booth,” and arriving before the designated time “may result in longer wait times” (Anime Expo 2026).
For a booth stored in Southern California, direct delivery by box truck can be the cheaper route where the kit charges more for the warehouse, because a local truck can make a move-in slot without crossing the country first. Where the rate is the same either way, as in the 2024 Los Angeles kit, read the conditions: that kit took advance-warehouse freight only if its official show carrier, TS Shipper, was used, and its rates did not include TS Shipper’s trucking. The trade show logistics page compares the two routes side by side.
What happens at the marshaling yard?
Large shows often send trucks to an off-site lot first. The 2019 GES manual describes it as “an offsite location where trucks are checked in and held until dock space for unloading becomes available,” where drivers get a number and are sent to a dock “as space is available.” At Anime Expo 2026, “All show site deliveries MUST report to the Marshaling Yard first,” then check in with Shepard on Figueroa Street and are dispatched by dock capacity.
The yard moves with the show. Recent ones:
- Los Angeles Convention Center: 1526 E 7th St (Anime Expo 2026); Dodger Stadium Lots 13 and 14 (Los Angeles Auto Show 2019).
- Anaheim Convention Center: 1898 S Douglass Rd (GES, Expo West 2024); 1122 N La Palma Pkwy (Freeman, NAMM 2022, NAMM).
Two timing rules matter. Same-day unloading is only assured for trucks that check in by 2:00 PM in both GES kits (GES Expo West 2024), and at the 2019 Auto Show trucks signing in after 2:00 PM could be charged at the overtime rate. For a driver arriving from out of state, waiting usually counts against federal hours of service: a driver may not drive after 14 consecutive hours from coming on duty, with 11 hours of driving allowed inside it (49 CFR 395.3). A long wait at the yard can end a driver’s legal day before move-out. A driver from Valencia, about 40 miles by road from the Los Angeles Convention Center, starts the day close by.
Southern California venue notes
What each building publishes about its docks. The show’s contractor and kit still set the yard, the times and the rates.
| Venue | Docks and doors | Dock and yard rules | Hand-carry |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Convention Center, 1201 S. Figueroa St | South Hall: 36 freight docks, doors up to 37 ft wide by 24 ft high, floor load 350 lb per sq ft. West Hall: 9 docks, Hall AB door 52 ft by 24 ft (from an undated brochure; 2026 show pages say construction limits dock access) (LACC) | Yard set per show. At Anime Expo 2026, because of construction, the South, Kentia and West Hall docks were open to exhibitors only 7:00 to 8:00 AM on show days | At the 2024 Travel and Adventure Show: one person, one trip, no dollies; hand-carriers were kept off the docks (LA Comic Con 2026 offered a dock hand-carry window). Cartload from a private vehicle: $175 a trip, up to 250 lb or 8 pieces (2024) |
| Anaheim Convention Center, Hall C dock at 1850 S. West St | 37 non-exclusive docks, six in ACC North, shared between shows (Visit Anaheim, 2018) | Contractors are required to marshal the docks (2018 brochure), and the show’s contractor had dock priority at all times in a 2026 kit. No early freight at the building | What one person can carry in one trip; no hand trucks, dollies or push carts without Teamster help (2026 kit) |
| San Diego Convention Center, 111 W. Harbor Dr | Halls D to H freight doors 23 by 16 ft; one 23 by 30 ft door in Hall H (IMS2023 guide) | Exhibitor dock use in 15-minute windows, coordinated through the marshaling yard (2023) | Per the show kit |
| Pasadena Convention Center | Underground bay with 7 docks and 3 freight elevators run by venue staff (Visit Pasadena) | Enter from Marengo Avenue, drive in head first, 30 minutes to unload; move-in times assigned by show management | Per the show kit |
| Long Beach Convention Center, Ocean Blvd | Hall A north dock: 5 truck bays plus a ramp; Hall B north dock: 3 truck bays; Hall C south dock: 8 truck bays plus a ramp (Exhibition Halls sheet) | Events that use a dock must use the facility’s dock controllers to marshal trucks and exhibitor vehicles, and early arrivals are turned away for re-delivery; the show’s contractor provides drayage and sets yard and dock times in the kit (General Rules and Regulations, Aug 2021) | Per the show kit |
No vehicle or load may exceed 14 ft in height without a special permit (section 35780), and one over 13 ft 6 in. may only run on highways the vehicle’s owner deems safe (California Vehicle Code 35250), which matters for tall crates on a flatbed more than for a box truck.
How to pay less for trade show drayage
Each of these comes from a rule in the kits above:
- Crate, skid and shrink-wrap. Crated freight takes the lowest rate, loose freight pays more, and the warehouse refuses or surcharges loose pieces. Wrap several pieces onto one skid so they bill as one shipment.
- Split mixed loads on the bill of lading. “Separate mixed van shipments between crated and uncrated and clearly identify the weights of each,” or the whole load is billed “at the Uncrated rate” (Expo Event Services, 2024).
- Bring certified weight tickets. Without them, a private vehicle’s load is billed on an estimate that cannot be adjusted.
- Make the target time, on straight time. Late and off-target freight pays a surcharge, and after-hours check-in can move the rate to overtime.
- Use what the show includes. Check the kit for an allowance (NAMM’s 1,000 lb per 100 sq ft, Comic Con’s free pallet) before you pay to ship around it.
- Hand-carry or cart small loads. Where the show allows hand-carry, what one person can carry in one trip skips drayage, and at the 2024 Los Angeles rates a $175-a-trip cartload ($350 in and out) costs less than the $470 minimum for up to 250 lb.
- Book the return before you arrive. Forced freight happens at move-out (next section).
What is forced freight, and how do you avoid it?
If your carrier is not checked in by the move-out deadline, or you never filed outbound instructions, the contractor ships the freight for you. The 2024 Los Angeles kit says freight “will be taken to a warehouse and forced shipped on a carrier determined by Expo Event Services,” and the exhibitor pays. If a designated carrier does not show, “the shipment will be reconsigned to the house carrier”; if no return information is provided, it goes back to the warehouse with storage charges. At the 2025 San Diego show, Freeman asked for every carrier to check in by 1:00 PM the day after close and reserved “the right to re-route your freight onto another carrier” (GCSAA 2025). At the 2025 San Diego show, excessive trash (display materials, carpet, padding, crates and pallets) left behind was disposed of and charged a handling fee and a disposal fee.
To avoid it: name your carrier on the outbound material handling form, turn the outbound bill of lading in at the service desk, and book the pickup when you book the delivery. Make sure the carrier name on the form matches the truck that arrives.
Where Alvy Logistics fits
We are the carrier on either side of the dock, not the show contractor. Our drivers deliver booth crates, cases and show kits to the advance warehouse, the marshaling yard or the dock by cargo van from $80 or box truck from $200 for the first 20 miles, collect them after move-out, and bring them back to storage in Valencia from $25 a pallet a month. Material handling inside the venue, and booth installation and dismantle, stay with the show’s contractors. Runs to Anaheim go with drivers based in Orange County, to Long Beach with drivers in Long Beach and the South Bay, and to San Diego with drivers in San Diego. For a show on a tight move-in, see same-day delivery.
Hotel ballrooms, arenas and outdoor event sites work the same way for us: displays, cases and merch to the dock on load-in day, back out when the event closes. Literature and giveaways can be packed into show kits in the same building, and booths can live on pallet storage between shows.
Shows outside Southern California move as LTL or truckload freight arranged through Accurate Freight Systems LLC, the licensed property broker in our group (MC-572734), with an authorized motor carrier. If that freight goes LTL, its freight class sets much of the price.
Send the show name, venue and dates, the advance warehouse deadline or your target move-in time, the move-out time, and the crate list with weights to request a quote. Phones are answered Monday to Friday, 8am to 8pm Pacific, so book night and weekend move-ins ahead.
