Shipping from Steffes Group, West Fargo
Steffes Group is 1,345 road miles, about 27 hours by truck, from the Port of Houston, the closest port for containers and flat racks, which also has regular RoRo calls. We collect as soon as Steffes Group issues the release, do any partial disassembly needed to fit a container, and ship by container, flat rack or, where a lane serves your country, RoRo.
Steffes Group at a glance
Steffes Group sells farm equipment, construction equipment and land through timed online and live webcast auctions, from West Fargo, North Dakota, with offices in Minnesota and Iowa. Many lots stay on the seller's farm. Containers usually rail from Chicago.
- Site type
- Permanent auction yard
- Auction company
- Steffes Group
- Closest port for container, flat rack and RoRo
- Port of Houston: 1,345 road miles, about 27 hours by truck
- Equipment sold here
- TractorsCombinesGrain HandlingConstruction EquipmentTrucks & Trailers
Best export ports from Steffes Group
Ranked by road distance from the yard gate. We list the closest container port, the closest main gateways with the most direct sailings, Savannah when it is within reach, any rail ramp that is much closer than the coast, and the closest RoRo ports, plus Brunswick, the busiest U.S. RoRo gateway, when it is within reach.
| Port | Road miles | Truck hours | Methods | Why this port |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago intermodal rail rampsRail ramp: containers are loaded here and railed to the coastRails to Newark, Norfolk, Savannah, Charleston, Los Angeles, and Seattle | 671 | 13.5 | Container | Rail ramp, much closer than the coast |
| Port of HoustonHouston, TX | 1,345 | 27 | Container, Flat rack, RoRo | Closest container portMain gateway, most direct sailingsClosest RoRo calls |
| Port of BaltimoreBaltimore, MD | 1,353 | 27 | RoRo | Closest RoRo calls |
| Port of SeattleSeattle, WA | 1,425 | 28.5 | Container, Flat rack | Main gateway, most direct sailings |
Road miles from OSRM (OpenStreetMap), calculated October 2026. Truck hours assume a 50 mph average for a loaded lowboy, including stops.
Methods from this location
Railed from Chicago to the coast
Oversized farm equipment on flat racks
Via Baltimore or Houston where a lane serves the destination
Pickup from the sale site or the seller's farm
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.
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.
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.
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.
Why Ship With Us
- Farm-site pickups across the Dakotas, Minnesota and Iowa
- Rail routing through Chicago for containers
- Experience with large farm equipment and flat rack loading
- Full export documentation
Our Services at This Location
- Pickup from Steffes sale sites and sellers' farms
- Rail and truck routing from the Upper Midwest
- Full export documentation
- Crating and blocking for ocean transport
Common destinations from Steffes Group
Container and flat rack services reach all of these. RoRo depends on the lane from the East and Gulf Coast, so it is shown separately.
| Destination | Ocean transit | RoRo from this coast |
|---|---|---|
 Australia | 28-35 days | Regular sailings |
 Kazakhstan | 35-50 days | No regular lane: container or flat rack |
 Ukraine | 25-40 days | Regular sailings |
 Nigeria | 21-30 days | Regular sailings |
 Saudi Arabia | 18-25 days | Regular sailings |
 Mongolia | 35-50 days | No regular lane: container or flat rack |
 Chile | 21-28 days | Regular sailings |
 Guatemala | 10-16 days | Regular sailings |
Transit times are typical port-to-port ranges. Every quote confirms the current schedule.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Paying by check and waiting for it to clear while the removal date approaches.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Steffes buyer's premium?
On its online auctions, 10% capped at $1,000 per item for timed online sales and 2% capped at $1,000 for live webcast sales, when paid on time by an accepted method.
Can you collect from the seller's farm?
Yes. We book the pickup with the seller once Steffes releases the item, which happens after payment clears.
Machines bought at Steffes Group that we load in containers
Buyers at Steffes Group ship these kinds of machines with us. Each card shows the boxes from our loading records; open a brand for every model.
Motor grader
CAT 12
1 × 40 ft high cube
Caterpillar loading plansExcavator
CAT 206B
1 × 45 ft high cube
Caterpillar loading plansWheel loader
Komatsu 180-1
1 × 20 ft container
Komatsu loading plansWheel loader
Komatsu 180-3
1 × 40 ft high cube
Komatsu loading plansExcavator
Hitachi EX 150
1 × 40 ft high cube
Hitachi Construction Machinery loading plansExcavator
Hitachi EX 370-5
1 × 40 ft open top (1 ft (0.3 m) over the side walls) + 1 × 40 ft high cube
Hitachi Construction Machinery loading plansWheel loader
Volvo 220D
2 × 40 ft high cube
Volvo Construction Equipment loading plansExcavator
Volvo EC 480EL
1 × 40 ft open top (1 ft (0.3 m) over the side walls) + 2 × 40 ft high cube
Volvo Construction Equipment loading plansWheel loader
Kawasaki 95Z VII
2 × 40 ft high cube + 1 × 20 ft container
Kawasaki loading plans
Ready to Ship from Steffes Group?
Contact us today for fast pickup and reliable worldwide shipping.