Shipping equipment bought at Steffes Group overseas
Also searched as Steffes Auctioneers, Steffes Group Inc., steffesgroup.com, West Fargo auction
Steffes Group sells farm, construction and transportation equipment from West Fargo, North Dakota, with offices in Minnesota and Iowa. On timed online sales the buyer's premium is 10%, capped at $1,000 per item, and payment is due within 2 business days of the invoice.
How Steffes Group works for export buyers
Steffes Group runs timed online auctions and live webcast sales from 2000 Main Avenue East, West Fargo, and on farms across the Upper Midwest.
Nothing is released until payment clears, so a wire is the fastest way to start pickup.
Steffes Group buyer terms
- Buyer's premium
- Timed online: 10%, capped at $1,000 per item. Live webcast: 2%, capped at $1,000. Source
- Payment
- Within 2 business days of the invoice; cards add 3%. Source
- Release
- Nothing is released until payment clears. Source
Checked October 2026. Terms vary by sale, so confirm them on your invoice.
After you win at Steffes Group
- 1Wire payment within 2 business days of the invoice.
- 2Send us the paid invoice and the pickup site, which may be a farm rather than West Fargo.
- 3We collect the machine, load it with our own carrier and take it to the port, or first to our facility if it needs partial disassembly to fit a container.
- 4We file the export declaration (EEI) in the Automated Export System. It is required when any Schedule B line is worth more than $2,500 or needs an export license, and its ITN confirmation goes to the carrier at least 24 hours before the vessel loads.
- 5For titled machines and vehicles, the original title and the EEI go to U.S. Customs at the port at least 72 hours before export. Without them the unit cannot sail.
- 6We send you the bill of lading and the documents your customs broker needs to clear the machine at destination.
How we work with Steffes Group
- From the Red River Valley we truck to the Chicago or Kansas City rail ramps for containers, or to the Pacific Northwest ports for oversized cargo.
Steffes Group locations and their best export ports
1 yard, each with the closest port that takes containers and flat racks, and the closest RoRo port, by road miles.
| Yard | Container and flat rack | RoRo |
|---|---|---|
| Steffes GroupWest Fargo, North Dakota | Port of Houston1,345 mi, about 27 h | Port of Houston1,345 mi, about 27 h |
Road miles from OSRM (OpenStreetMap), calculated October 2026. Truck hours assume a 50 mph average for a loaded lowboy, including stops.
Container is usually the cheapest option, and we do the partial disassembly needed to make the machine fit. How we containerize heavy equipment
Container, flat rack, RoRo or breakbulk?
We quote in this order because it is usually cheapest first. Most machines that look too big for a box fit once our crew takes off the bucket, boom, cab or wheels; larger ones are taken further apart across several containers, and pieces too big or heavy for a flat rack or roll trailer go breakbulk.
01Container
Best fit- Work needed
- We partially disassemble when needed (bucket, boom, cab, wheels), or take larger machines further apart across several high-cubes and open-tops, then crate, block and lash every part.
- Destinations
- Widest: almost every port worldwide, plus inland delivery by rail.
- Typical cost
- Usually the lowest, with no out-of-gauge surcharges.
- Protection
- Sealed steel box; loose parts and attachments travel locked inside.
- Best for
- Most machines: compact ones as they are, others after partial disassembly, and large ones split across several containers.
02Flat rack
- Work needed
- Ships assembled, blocked and lashed. Surcharges apply when wider than 2.4 m or taller than about 1.95 m.
- Destinations
- Most container ports, on the same vessels as containers.
- Typical cost
- Moderate; rises with every centimetre out of gauge.
- Protection
- Open to the weather; we protect cabs, electronics and hydraulics.
- Best for
- Excavators, dozers and loaders too wide for a container door.
03RoRo
- Work needed
- Drives on assembled; non-runners go on a roll trailer.
- Destinations
- Fewer destinations: regular lanes to Europe, West Africa, the Middle East, Oceania and parts of Latin America.
- Typical cost
- Often competitive for large self-propelled machines where a lane exists.
- Protection
- Below deck, but loose items and attachments cannot ride inside the cab.
- Best for
- Running machines going to a port with regular RoRo sailings.
04Breakbulk
- Work needed
- Lifted aboard piece by piece by ship’s or shore cranes, on its own skids or cradle, then stowed and lashed in the hold or on deck.
- Destinations
- Ports with breakbulk berths and heavy-lift cranes; sailings are booked voyage by voyage.
- Typical cost
- Usually the highest for a single small machine; often the only option for the largest pieces.
- Protection
- In the hold or lashed on deck; we crate, wrap and protect exposed parts.
- Best for
- Pieces too large or heavy for a flat rack or roll trailer: transformers, process modules, mining trucks, crane sections.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Paying by check and waiting for it to clear while the removal date approaches.
Steffes Group export questions
What is the Steffes buyer's premium?
On the timed online sale shown, 10% capped at $1,000 per item; on live webcast sales, 2% capped at $1,000. Check the terms of your sale.