Equipment
Flatbed Dispatch Services
Flatbed rewards drivers who know what they are doing. Securement is on you, the loads are heavier, and the weather is a factor in a way it simply is not on a van.
The upside is a smaller pool of qualified carriers and stronger rates in the construction and industrial corridors — Texas, Louisiana, the Ohio Valley and the Southeast in particular.
Freight we book on flatbed
- Steel coils, plate and structural
- Lumber and building materials
- Machinery and equipment
- Pipe and oilfield supplies
- Precast concrete
- Roofing and drywall
What we watch on every load
- Securement, chains, straps and tarps
- Tarping pay negotiated separately
- Weather exposure and load protection
- Weight distribution and axle limits
- Construction season affecting volume
The market
What running flatbed is actually like
Flatbed rewards operators who know what they are doing. Securement is your responsibility and your liability, loads are heavier and less uniform, and weather is a genuine operational factor rather than an inconvenience.
The upside is a smaller pool of qualified carriers. Not everyone can tarp a load properly in the rain at five in the morning, and the rates reflect that. Flatbed also ties closely to industrial and construction activity, which means the strong markets are geographically concentrated — Texas and Louisiana on the petrochemical corridor, the Ohio Valley for steel, the Southeast for building materials.
Load types vary enormously. Steel coils demand specific securement and weight distribution. Lumber and drywall need tarping. Machinery may need chains and specific attachment points. Pipe rolls if it is not blocked correctly. Each has its own failure mode, and each failure mode is expensive.
The carriers who do best on flatbed treat securement knowledge as the asset it is, and work with dispatchers who understand that a tarped load at a construction site is a different proposition from a drop-and-hook at a distribution centre.
What moves the rate on flatbed
Tarping is the big one and it should be negotiated separately — tarp pay is standard and carriers who do not ask often do not get it. Beyond that: whether the load is over-dimensional, whether the delivery is a job site with limited access and no forklift, and construction season, which lifts rates through the warmer months and softens them in deep winter.
Seasonality
Construction season drives it. Volume builds through spring, peaks over summer and holds into autumn before falling away in the northern states over winter. The Gulf Coast petrochemical corridor is less seasonal and can carry a flatbed operator through the quieter months.
41 states
Where flatbed demand is strongest
These states show structurally elevated flatbed demand based on their dominant industries. Each page has current freight market data for that state.
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- Colorado
- Florida
- Georgia
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Mexico
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
Other equipment
We also dispatch
Dry Van
Dry van dispatch across the USA — the highest-volume equipment type with the widest freight availability.
Reefer
Refrigerated freight dispatch — produce, protein and temperature-controlled loads nationwide.
Step Deck
Step deck and drop deck dispatch for taller freight that will not clear on a standard flatbed.
Power Only
Power only dispatch — pulling shipper or broker-provided trailers without owning the box.
Box Truck
Box truck and straight truck dispatch for regional, expedited and final-mile freight.
Questions
Flatbed dispatch — common questions
Do you negotiate tarp pay?
Every tarped load. Tarp pay is a standard accessorial and it is entirely normal to ask for it — but it is only paid if it is agreed in advance and written onto the rate confirmation.
What securement do I need to carry?
That depends on the freight you want to run. Chains and binders for machinery and steel, straps for lumber and packaged goods, edge protectors, and tarps if you want access to the loads that pay best. We match loads to what you actually carry rather than assuming.
Is flatbed harder to keep loaded than dry van?
In some regions, yes. Flatbed freight concentrates around industrial and construction activity rather than being spread everywhere. Lane strategy matters more on flatbed for exactly that reason.
Try it first
See it before you commit
We do not publish rates, because the honest answer depends on your equipment, your lanes and how you run. Instead we offer a free trial week: we find you a flatbed load, negotiate the rate, dispatch it and handle the broker. If the week justified it we carry on. If not, you owe nothing and you keep the revenue.
Running flatbed? Let's get you loaded.
Talk to a dispatcher today. No long-term contract, no obligation on the first call.