Consolidating is usually the fastest saving available to an aftermarket distributor. It is also easy to over-apply, and end up paying for weight you did not need.
Consolidate when the goods share a destination and a deadline
One consignment, one set of export documents, one tracking reference. That is the core benefit, and it applies whenever the goods are going to the same place at roughly the same time.
It also reduces the number of times something can go missing in transit, which matters more than the freight saving on expensive assemblies.
Keep it separate when weight stops being cheap
Freight is billed on the greater of actual and volumetric weight. Heavy assemblies and light components sit at opposite ends of that calculation, and forcing them into one shipment sometimes pushes the shipment into a higher chargeable band than two separate consignments would have cost.
Ask for the freight both ways before you decide. It is a two-minute calculation for the supplier and can go either direction.
- Heavy, dense goods: actual weight usually governs
- Bulky, light goods: volumetric weight usually governs
- Mixed loads: ask for both options before committing
Do not consolidate across a customs change
If part of the order is destined for a different country, or needs different customs treatment, separating it at dispatch is almost always cheaper than separating it at the border.
The practical rule
Consolidate the shipments that share a destination and a clearance path. Split the ones that do not. Everything else is arithmetic — and it is arithmetic worth asking for.
Have a part number to price?
Send it over with the quantity and destination. You will get a fitment check, a unit price and a freight cost — usually the same business day.