An establishment primarily involved in rendering support services for other establishments within the same company, such as warehouses, distribution centers and central administrative offices. For more information, see the Commodity Flow Survey Methodology.
Average miles are computed by dividing the total miles traveled by the total number of shipments. For more information, see the Commodity Flow Survey Methodology.
The Business Register is the U.S. Census Bureau's database of establishments of all domestic businesses (except private households and governments) and organizational units of multi-establishment businesses. The Business Register (BR) covers more than 160,000 multi-establishment companies, representing 1.8 million affiliated establishments, 5 million single establishment companies, and nearly 21 million non employer businesses.
Business Register information is establishment-based and includes business location, organization type (e.g., subsidiary or parent), industry classification, and operating data (e.g., receipts and employment). The scope, detail, and reference period for BR information vary by establishment type and size; and the source of list information. Business Register information is maintained separately for each establishment and company. More information
Withholding data to protect the confidentiality of information reported by individual businesses or persons. Data withheld are replaced with S's in appropriate data cells.
The coefficient of variation (of a particular estimate) is the ratio of the standard error (of a particular estimate) to the expected value (of a particular estimate).
An estimate of the coefficient of variation is given by: the ratio of an estimate of the standard error to an estimate of the expected value. The estimate of the expected value is given by: the value of the particular estimate itself.
A product that an establishment produces, sells, or distributes. This does not include items that are considered as excess or waste of the establishment's operation. More information
Title 13, United States Code, Section 9, requires the Census Bureau to keep your information CONFIDENTIAL and can use your responses only to produce statistics.
The Census Bureau is not permitted to publicly release your responses in a way that could identify your business, organization, or institution. Per the Federal Cybersecurity Enhancement Act of 2015, your data are protected from cybersecurity risks through screening of the systems that transmit your data.
Statistical methods used in the tabulation of data prior to releasing data products to ensure the confidentiality of responses. Statistical methods used in the tabulation of data prior to releasing data to ensure the confidentiality of responses.
Data in CFS tables reflect survey estimates, that is, these numbers and percentages are estimated totals produced using the sum of weighted shipment data (reported or imputed). CFS respondents provide data for a sample of shipments made by their respective establishments in the survey year. For each establishment, an estimate of that establishment's total value of shipments is produced for the entire survey year. To do this, four different weights are used – the shipment weight, the shipment nonresponse weight, the quarter weight, and the quarter nonresponse weight. Three additional weights are then applied to produce estimates representative of the entire universe – the establishment-level adjustment weight, the establishment (or sample) weight, and the industry-level adjustment weight.
The shortest distance between two points on the surface of a sphere over the surface of that sphere. For more information, see the Commodity Flow Survey Methodology.
An intermodal shipment is defined as a shipment of a commodity that has been placed within a piece of transportation equipment that is designed to be interchanged (transferred) between different modes of transportation under a single rate (e.g., a single bill of lading). Examples of intermodal transportation include the shipment of commodities in truck trailers designed to be placed on railroad flat cars (TOFC); shipping containers designed to be placed on railroad flat cars (COFC); or shipping containers for marine transportation. Intermodal (IM or ISO) tanks designed for interchange between the truck, rail and marine modes are also examples of intermodal transportation. For more information, see the Commodity Flow Survey Methodology.
The type of transportation used for moving a shipment to its domestic destination. (For exports, the domestic destination is the port of exit.)
Single mode shipments – Shipments transported by only one of the following modes: Private truck, For-hire truck, Rail, any water mode, Pipeline, or Air.
Truck – as a single mode in 2022 includes the new mode of customer pick-up (CPU), as well as for-hire truck and company-owned truck. In 2017, truck as a single mode included only shipments that were made by for-hire truck or company-owned truck.
For-hire truck – Truck operated by common or contract carriers made under a negotiated rate.
Company Owned Truck – Trucks operated by employees of this establishment or the buyer/receiver of the shipment. Includes trucks providing dedicated services to the establishment.
Customer pick-up – Any shipment that is picked up at the destination by the customer. In 2022, for the first time, the Census Bureau made estimates for this mode.
Rail – Any common carrier or private railroad.
Water – includes inland water, great lakes, deep sea, and multiple waterways.
Inland Water – In previous cycles this was known as Shallow Draft. Inland Water refers to vessels or barges operating primarily in inland or coastal waterways, both within and along the borders of the United States, such as rivers, lakes (excluding the Great Lakes), coastal waters, locks, and canals.
Great Lakes – Any vessel or barge operating on the Great Lakes.
Deep Sea – In previous cycles this was known as Deep Draft. Deep Sea refers to vessels or barges operating primarily in the open waters of the ocean, mostly outside the borders of the United States.
Multiple Waterways – Shipments sent by any combination of Inland Water, Great Lakes, and Deep Sea, usually involving a transfer between vessels.
Air – Any shipment sent by an air route to its destination This includes shipments carried by truck to or from an airport.
Pipeline – Movements of commodities i.e., oil, petroleum, gas, slurry, etc. through pipelines that extend to other establishments or locations beyond the shipper's establishment. Does not include aqueducts for the movement of water.
Other single modes – Shipments with a mode other than any of the listed modes, such as conveyor belt, animal power, etc.
Multiple mode shipments – Shipments for which two or more of the following modes of transportation were used:
Parcel, U.S. Postal Service, or Courier shipments are considered multiple modes because this category includes all parcel shipments whether on the ground or via air tendered to a parcel or express carrier. Parcel shipments are limited to a maximum of 150 pounds. Note: "Truck and Rail" and "Rail and Water" combinations included under "Multiple Modes" may not reflect all the movement of trailers or containers by rail and at least one other mode of transportation. Since the shipper may not always know the modal combinations used to transport the goods, some shipments moving by more than one mode may be reported as a single mode shipment. This may result in underestimation of multimodal shipments in the CFS.
Parcel delivery/Courier/U.S. Parcel Post – Includes ground and air segments of shipments of packages and parcels. Parcel shipments are limited to a maximum weight of 150 pounds.
Other multiple modes – Shipments sent by any other mode combinations not specifically listed in the tables.
Unknown – Unable to determine the mode of transportation. In 2022, for the first time, the Census Bureau made estimates for this mode.
A method of disclosure avoidance in which values of each shipment are perturbed prior to tabulation by applying a random noise multiplier.
The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) is the standard used by Federal statistical agencies in classifying business establishments for the purpose of collecting, analyzing, and publishing statistical data related to the U.S. business economy. This system is used by the United States, Canada and Mexico. NAICS
Errors that occur because only part of the population is directly contacted. With any sample, differences are likely to exist between the characteristics of the sampled population and the larger group from which the sample was chosen.
The squared difference, averaged over all possible samples of the same size and design, between the estimator and its average value.
A shipment is a single movement of goods, commodities, or products from an establishment to a customer or to another establishment owned or operated by the same company as the originating establishment (e.g., a warehouse, distribution center, or retail or wholesale outlet). Full or partial truckloads are counted as a single shipment only if all commodities on the truck are destined for the same location. If a truck makes multiple deliveries on a route, the goods delivered at each stop are counted as one shipment. Interoffice memos, payroll checks, or business correspondence are not considered shipments. Shipments such as refuse, scrap paper, waste, or recyclable materials are not considered shipments unless the establishment is in the business of selling or providing these materials. For more information, see the Commodity Flow Survey Methodology.
The SCTG coding system was developed jointly by agencies of the United States and Canadian governments based on the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System (Harmonized System) to address statistical needs in regard to products transported. The SCTG employs a five-digit numbering system, the structure of which is hierarchical consisting of four levels. More information.
Measure of the variation among the estimates from all possible samples; measure of the precision with which an estimate from a particular sample approximates the average results of all possible samples; square root of the sampling variance.
An outsourced provider that manages and provides all or a significant part of an organization's warehousing and transportation needs. A 3PL provides under contract some or all of these functions: management of transportation; warehousing; transportation; inventory control; and order management. Companies that provide only trucking services or only warehousing services are not considered 3PLs.
In 2017, the shipment weight multiplied by the mileage traveled by the shipment. For the Commodity Flow Survey (CFS), the respondents are asked to report shipment weight in pounds. Aggregated pound-miles were converted to ton-miles. Mileage is calculated as the distance between the shipment origin and destination ZIP Codes. For shipments by truck, rail, or shallow draft vessels, the mileage excludes international segments. For example, mileages from Alaska to the continental United States exclude any mileages through Canada (see the "Mileage Calculations" section for more details). For trucks making multiple stops, the ton-miles were calculated for each delivery, and each drop-off point was treated as a final destination. For more information, see the Commodity Flow Survey Methodology.
The total weight of the entire shipment. Respondents are to report the weight in pounds. Aggregated pounds are converted to short-tons (2,000 pounds). The ton totals in the CFS represent the sum of separate shipments of a commodity as it moves through the production and consumption segments of the supply chain; hence the tonnage of goods may be counted more than once in the production life cycle (e.g., goods that are moved through distribution centers). For more information, see the Commodity Flow Survey Methodology.
In 2017, total modal activity referred to the values for the overall activity (e.g., ton-miles) of a specific mode of transportation. It included shipments made with a particular mode, whether used as single-mode shipment, or as part of a multiple-mode shipment. For example, the total modal activity for private truck is the total ton-miles carried by private truck in single-mode shipments, combined with the total ton-miles carried by private truck in all multiple-mode shipments that include private truck (private truck and for-hire truck, private truck and rail, private truck and air, etc.)
The dollar value of the entire shipment. This is defined as the net selling value, exclusive of freight charges and excise taxes. The value data are displayed in millions of dollars. The total value of shipments, as measured by the CFS, and the U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) provide different measures of economic activity in the United States and are not directly comparable. GDP is the value of all goods produced and services performed by labor and capital located in the United States. The value of shipments, as measured by the CFS, is the market value of goods shipped from manufacturing, mining, wholesale, and select retail and service establishments, as well as warehouses and managing offices of multiunit establishments. Three important differences between GDP and value of shipments: