Screening Plants Shipping
A tracked screening plant drives aboard a RoRo ship or goes on a flat rack with its conveyors folded. Static screens ship as decks, frames and motors, most of it in containers.
Overview
Mobile screening plants are built to travel: the side and tail conveyors fold, and the screen box lowers for transport. Folded, most tracked screens are still wider than the 2.34 m container door, so they drive aboard a RoRo ship from Baltimore or Brunswick where a lane serves the destination, or go on a 40 ft flat rack, which carries about 39,000 kg on a 12.06 m deck.
Smaller wheeled and compact screens can go in a container once the conveyors come off, with the conveyors in the same box or a second one. The manufacturer's transport drawing gives the folded size, and we plan from it.
Static vibrating screens for fixed plants ship as screen boxes, decks, motors and support frames. Screen media and spares go in 40 ft high cubes; the screen box goes on a flat rack or in an open top by width.
We have no screening plants in our own loading records, so this page sets out the method rather than a past plan. The hopper, decks and conveyors are cleaned of soil before loading, because destination ports inspect for it. We confirm the plan with photos before booking.
Send the make, model and serial number and say whether the plant is tracked or wheeled. Tracked screens usually ship on a flat rack with the side conveyors folded. Empty the decks of material and clean the plant of soil and rock before it reaches the port.
Cost depends on the plant's size. Tracked screens usually go on a flat rack, priced per rack plus any overhang surcharge, or by RoRo, priced by cubic metres. Trucking from the quarry or dealer to the port is quoted on top.
Typical Specifications
| Weight Range | 20 - 55+ metric tons |
|---|---|
| Transport Width | 2.8m - 3.5m (conveyors folded) |
| Transport Height | 3.2m - 4.0m |
| Decks | Single, double, or triple screen decks |
Recommended Shipping Methods
Worked example
Powerscreen Warrior 1800 (tracked): 49 ft 1 in / 14.95 m long, 9 ft 10 in / 3 m wide, 11 ft 2 in / 3.4 m high, 70,000 lb / 31,750 kg.
The ladder below is worked out from these figures. Larger or smaller units of the same type can land on a different rung.
Cheapest first: the shipping cost ladder
We price every machine from the bottom rung up. A machine only moves up a rung when a measurement rules out the cheaper method.
Powerscreen Warrior 1800 (tracked) is 49 ft 1 in / 14.95 m long, more than a 39 ft 7 in / 12.06 m flat rack deck, so it drives or tows aboard a RoRo vessel.
- Rung 1
Container
Lowest cost
When: Fits through a 7 ft 8 in / 2.34 m × 8 ft 6 in / 2.58 m door and under 59,500 lb / 27,000 kg, whole or after we take off the bucket, boom, cab or wheels.
- Rung 2
Flat rack
Mid cost
When: Too wide or tall for a container door, but within 14 ft 9 in / 4.5 m wide, 13 ft 1 in / 4 m tall and 86,000 lb / 39,000 kg on one rack.
- Rung 3
RoRo
Mid cost
Best fit for Powerscreen Warrior 1800 (tracked)
When: Drives or tows aboard, under 19 ft 8 in / 6 m tall and 110 US tons / 100,000 kg, going to a port with regular RoRo sailings.
- Rung 4
Breakbulk
Highest cost
When: Past flat-rack and roll-trailer limits, or shipped as modules lifted aboard piece by piece.
RoRo (Roll-on/Roll-off)
RecommendedFor self-propelled tracked screens within limits.
Breakbulk / Heavy Lift
RecommendedFor larger or over-dimension plants.
Flat Rack Container
For wheeled/skid units and components.
Heavy Haul Trucking
RecommendedPermitted inland transport to the port.
Container, flat rack, RoRo or breakbulk?
01Container
- 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.
Handling & Preparation Requirements
- Fold and secure all conveyors
- Lower/secure the screenbox where possible
- Reduce fluids and disconnect batteries for ocean shipment
- Protect screen media and drives
- Document configuration and condition
Auction yards that sell screening plants
Yards whose published equipment categories include screening plants. Each yard page lists its nearest export ports and how we collect from it.
Common Models We Ship
- Powerscreen Chieftain, Warrior
- Terex Finlay 683, 883
- McCloskey S130, S190
- Metso / Sandvik mobile screens
Where screening plants shipments go wrong
Mistakes we see on screening plants bookings, and what avoids them.
- A screenbox left floating on its springs bounces through the voyage and fatigues the spring mounts, so we fit the transport locks or wedge the box before lashing.
- The radio remote or tether for the track drive is often left in the seller's office, and without it a tracked screen cannot be driven off the RoRo vessel.
- Buyers who do not order mesh panels sized for their product wait weeks for screen media, so adding a spare set to the same booking avoids an idle plant on arrival.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do tracked screens ship?
Self-propelled tracked screens can use RoRo within limits; larger plants ship breakbulk.
Are conveyors removed?
Conveyors fold for transport and are secured; full removal is rarely required.
Can you ship a crushing-and-screening train?
Yes, we ship complete crusher + screen + conveyor trains to one destination.
Sources
Every figure on this page comes from the documents below, each checked on the date shown. Carriers and authorities revise them, so we confirm the current figure when we book.
- [1]Seaway Project Cargo: about the company, checked October 22, 2026
- [2]Seaway Project Cargo country shipping guides, checked October 22, 2026
Plan your shipment
Import Duty & Tax Estimator
Estimate duty and VAT on the CIF value for 70+ destinations.
Dimensional Weight Calculator
Work out chargeable weight before you book.
Container Space Calculator
See how your cargo fits in 20ft, 40ft, and HC containers.
Route Finder
Load port, sailings, duty and rules for a machine and destination.
Ready to Ship Your Screening Plants?
Send the make, model and pickup location. We quote screening plants by container, flat rack or RoRo from the U.S. port that suits the machine.