Transport for Paper Industry & Printing Houses
Paper reels, sheet stock on pallets or printed products with a fixed publication date — Logisticoo runs transports for paper manufacturers, converters and printing houses with the equipment and the care that this sensitive material demands. Paper is heavy and vulnerable at the same time: a printing-paper reel often weighs one to two tonnes, and a single damaged edge or a moisture stain can render the entire reel unusable for the press. That is why reels travel with us either upright or lying down as specified, with edge protection, chocked against rolling and secured in a form-fit manner, always in dry load compartments. Sheet paper and cardboard on pallets we secure without pressure marks using wide straps. Printing houses work against the clock — catalogues, inserts and periodicals have publication dates that tolerate no delay. Urgent paper resupplies to the press we run as a direct delivery, and planned works collections we schedule into fixed time windows. We also cover the services between paper mill, finisher and converter across Europe, with a fixed price within 30 minutes and a dispatcher who takes reel weights seriously.
Vehicles & equipment
Dry curtainsider trucks and box vehicles are used, with anti-slip mats, reel chocks and edge protection; at the consignee, unloading is typically carried out by clamp truck, which we take into account when stowing.
Typical requirements
- Transport of paper reels up to two tonnes, upright or lying down as specified
- Edge and moisture protection over the entire route
- Form-fit securing against rolling with chocks and lashing equipment
- Urgent resupply to printing houses ahead of publication dates
- Axle-load-appropriate loading with high reel weights
- Scheduled works services between mill, finishing and converting
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Typical shipments from the paper industry
Three product groups characterise paper transport. First, paper reels: printing, newsprint and packaging paper, tissue and board reels, often 800 kg to over 2 t each, in diameters of around 1 to 1.5 m — the heavy core business unloaded by the clamp truck. Second, sheet and cut stock on pallets: copy and printing paper by the ream, cardboard, sheet goods, pressure-sensitive and edge-critical. Third, printed products with a fixed publication date — catalogues, inserts, magazines, advertising print — where the transit time decides distribution. Add to this semi-finished goods between paper mill, finisher and converter, as well as cores and empty pallets on the return leg. From a single pallet space in groupage to a full load of reels we carry any quantity — always in a dry load compartment, because moisture is paper's most expensive enemy.
Standards and regulations in paper transport
The focus is on cargo securing of heavy, roll- and tip-prone goods to VDI 2700 ff. and EN 12195: upright reels are stowed in a form-fit manner in rows and lashed down, lying reels additionally secured against rolling with chocks or reel-chock cushions; the axle loads are carefully distributed with high reel weights in order to comply with the permissible gross weight and the individual axle loads. Edge protection and anti-slip mats prevent pressure marks and shifting. The second requirement is moisture protection: closed, dry load compartments, no standing times with an open curtain in the rain, factory film wrapping remains intact. For sheet stock we ensure securing without pressure marks using wide straps. Recycling and waste-paper returns we run separately from fresh goods, so that no contamination occurs.
How a paper transport works at Logisticoo
- Enquiry with the goods, reel weight/diameter or pallet count, orientation (upright/lying) and deadline.
- Fixed-price quote within 30 minutes with the appropriate vehicle class.
- Stowage planning: we set the axle-load distribution, securing concept and unloading method (clamp truck at the consignee).
- Loading in the dry load compartment, form-fit and lashed down, with edge protection at pressure-sensitive points.
- Transport to the deadline or time-window requirement; in the event of print bottlenecks the express direct run goes straight to the press's reel store.
- Unloading at the consignee, typically by clamp truck, which we take into account in the stowage. For scheduled works services between mill, finisher and converter we set fixed conditions and a recurring process.
What does a paper transport cost?
We quote the price in advance as a fixed price; the rule-of-thumb rates per kilometre (±15 %): sprinter van for urgent small quantities around €1.10/km (from €89), 7.5 t truck around €1.45/km (from €169), 12 t truck around €1.65/km (from €219), articulated truck for reels and volume around €1.95/km (from €379). Because paper is heavy, weight often limits the load: at around 24–25 t payload, an articulated truck is maxed out with about twelve 2-tonne reels before the floor space is full. A full load of reels Munich–Nuremberg (around 170 km) with the articulated truck thus comes to roughly €330–380, a print direct run of paper by sprinter van over 300 km roughly €280–380. Surcharges arise for express, night/weekend driving and time-window commitments.
Typical paper shipments and the right handling
| Shipment type | Example | Vehicle/equipment | Typical transit time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paper reels (heavy) | Printing/packaging reels up to 2 t | Articulated truck, reel chocks, clamp truck | plannable, axle-load-appropriate |
| Sheet stock/pallet | Copy paper, cardboard by the ream | Curtainsider/box vehicle, wide straps | plannable |
| Printed-product deadline | Catalogues, inserts, periodicals | Articulated truck / sprinter van, time window | deadline-bound |
| Print urgent case | Paper resupply to the press | Express sprinter van, 24/7 | a few hours |
| Works service | Mill → finisher → converter | Scheduled curtainsider | on a fixed rhythm |
Frequently asked questions
Do you transport paper reels upright or lying down?
Both — what matters is the specification of the manufacturer or the further-processing machine. Upright reels are stowed in a form-fit manner and lashed down, lying reels additionally secured against rolling with chocks. Important for dispatch are the reel diameter, width and weight, so that the stowage plan and axle loads are correct.
What happens if the printing house runs out of paper just before going to press?
Then we run an express direct delivery from the paper store or mill straight to the press — a fixed price within 30 minutes, collection as soon as possible, on request with a time-window commitment for delivery to the reel store. Your dispatcher keeps the printing house informed of every interim status, so that machine scheduling remains plannable.
What does transporting a full load of paper reels cost?
You receive a fixed price within 30 minutes. As a guide: articulated truck around €1.95/km (from €379), sprinter van for urgent cases around €1.10/km (from €89), each ±15 %. Because reels are heavy, the payload is usually maxed out before the floor space. A reel load Munich–Nuremberg (around 170 km) thus comes to roughly €330–380; express, night and time-window runs we show separately.
Do you take into account that we unload with a clamp truck?
Yes. The unloading of reels is typically carried out by clamp truck at the consignee. We plan for this already at the stowage stage — with sufficient access to each reel and a securing concept that can be released reel by reel without destabilising the rest of the load.
How do you prevent moisture damage to the paper?
With us, paper travels exclusively in closed, dry load compartments. The factory film wrapping remains intact, the curtain stays closed until secured loading, and we avoid standing times with an open load compartment in the rain. That way the goods arrive with the same moisture content they had when they left the mill.