A forwarder consolidates cargo to fill a container that no single shipment would fill, booking the box and loading multiple consignments into it, then deconsolidating at destination so each consignment goes to its own consignee. Consolidation is the forwarder's act of combining the cargo, distinct from LCL, the less-than-container service the individual shipper buys when its cargo travels inside that shared box. A co-load is one forwarder placing its cargo into another forwarder's consolidation rather than building its own, the common move when a forwarder lacks the volume on a lane to fill a box alone. The decision it drives is economics and timing: wait to consolidate enough cargo for a fuller box, or co-load with another forwarder to move sooner.
Glossary
Consolidation (Co-load)
The forwarder's practice of combining several shippers' smaller shipments into one full container for the main carriage, then separating them again at destination.