Chilled and Frozen Deliveries to Supermarket Distribution Centres in Brisbane

We deliver chilled and frozen pallets into supermarket distribution centres and retail networks across Brisbane and South East Queensland. Each delivery is booked to the receiver’s time slot, carried in a pre-cooled vehicle, and backed by probe temperatures recorded at pickup and delivery.

For a food manufacturer or importer, getting the order is half the job. This page explains how distribution centre receiving works, why loads get turned away and what we need from you to get it right.

Where Brisbane’s distribution centres are

Large supermarket and grocery distribution centres operate in Brisbane’s south-west and in Logan, close to the Logan Motorway, Ipswich Motorway and M1. We run refrigerated freight through those corridors, covering Brisbane, Logan and Ipswich.

We are an independent carrier working for the supplier. Each receiver sets its own rules for who can deliver and how, so confirm those with your buyer and pass them on to us.

Booked delivery slots: how distribution centre receiving works

Most distribution centres receive by appointment. The supplier or the carrier books a slot against the purchase order, and the truck is expected at the gate inside that slot. Arrive late, or without the booking reference, and the load can be refused or pushed to another day.

Slots need realistic travel time. A business that consigns or receives goods by heavy vehicle is a party in the Chain of Responsibility under the Heavy Vehicle National Law, so a booking should never depend on a driver speeding or skipping rest. Our guide on how to book refrigerated transport covers the lead times involved.

Paperwork to have ready before pickup

• Purchase order number and the delivery booking reference.
• Delivery date and time slot, and the receiving dock if one is allocated.
• Pallet count, with the height and weight of each.
• Temperature specification for every product on the load.
• Delivery docket or manifest that matches what is physically on the pallets.
• Receiver’s requirements for pallet type, labelling and wrapping.

Give us these when you book, not on the morning of pickup. A mismatch between the paperwork and the pallets is slow to fix once the truck is at the gate.

Temperature checks at receival

Expect the receiver to check temperature before accepting anything. FSANZ’s guide to the Food Standards Code gives the example of asking to see the truck’s temperature data logger, probing a sample and recording the time and temperature.

We read calibrated probe temperatures at pickup and again at delivery. Those records are kept on file and supplied with the proof of delivery on request, so you have evidence if a reading is disputed.

Why chilled and frozen loads get rejected

Rejections are expensive. The stock comes back, the order goes unfilled and short-dated product may not get a second chance. The usual causes are:

1. 1Product out of temperature. Chilled food above 5°C can only be accepted if the transporter can show the time and temperature were safe.
2. 2Product loaded warm. A refrigerated vehicle maintains temperature. It cannot chill a pallet that left the factory too warm.
3. 3Missed or missing booking. The truck arrives outside its slot, or with no valid reference.
4. 4Paperwork that does not match. Wrong purchase order, wrong quantities or a missing docket.
5. 5Pallet problems. Damaged pallets, loose wrap, overhang or a pallet built taller than the receiver allows.
6. 6Signs of thawing. Frozen product that is soft or shows refrozen ice.

Mixed-temperature orders, part loads, cross-docking and store runs

An order with chilled and frozen lines does not need two trucks. A multi-temperature vehicle holds both behind a movable bulkhead, with frozen product nearest the evaporator.

A few pallets can travel as a part load. See our guide to part-load refrigerated pallet freight. Where freight has to be held or transferred between vehicles, we arrange cold storage and cross-docking through partner facilities. We do not operate our own warehouse.

Not all retail freight goes through a distribution centre. We also run sequenced multi-drop deliveries direct to independent grocers and convenience stores. The load is packed in drop order and doors stay closed between stops.

Vehicles and quotes for retail distribution

Medium trucks typically carry 6–10 pallets, large trucks 12–14 and semi-trailers 22–24, based on the standard 1165 × 1165 mm Australian pallet. Chilled and frozen food usually cannot be double-stacked. The fleet page has the full list.

Price depends on distance, pallet count, vehicle size and the slot. Send the details and we will quote within 24 hours, often the same day for routine routes.