Short answer: International robot shipments fail in predictable ways — shock damage to precision gears and encoders, moisture and corrosion during weeks at sea, missing or mismatched documents at customs, and insurance that excludes the damage that actually happened. The defences are equally predictable: a contract term (Incoterm) that states exactly who carries each risk, packing engineered for the machine rather than the forklift, and an arrival inspection done before the crate's evidence is thrown away.
Incoterms: the one line that allocates everything
Incoterms define, for each stage of the journey, who pays, who arranges, and — the clause that matters when something breaks — at what point risk passes from seller to buyer. The practical differences buyers trip over: under EXW the buyer carries nearly everything from the seller's door; FOB moves risk at the ship's rail in the port of loading; DAP and DDP place the journey's risk on the seller deep into the buyer's country, priced accordingly. None is "best" — the correct choice matches the buyer's freight capability and the value of controlling the insurance. What is never acceptable is a contract silent on the term, because the argument then happens after the damage. This is the logistics counterpart to the market-entry compliance covered in our guide to exporting robots to the EU and North America: that guide gets the machine legally saleable; this one gets it there intact.
Packing: engineering against shock and water
A robot arm is a set of precision gearboxes and absolute encoders that expect to travel bolted, braced and dry. Export packing should include: the arm locked in its transport posture with axis braces fitted; a rigid crate or skid that keeps forklift loads off the machine; shock and tilt indicators on the crate, photographed at loading; and moisture protection sized for the route — sealed barrier bags with desiccant for sea freight, not a plastic sheet. Batteries, controllers and pendants travel as their own protected line items. Ask the seller for their packing specification and loading photographs as contract deliverables; a maker who ships robots regularly has both, and their absence is information.
Batteries and the dangerous-goods corner
Lithium batteries — in mobile robots, backup packs and some controllers — are regulated in transport, most strictly by air. The practical consequences: air freight may require batteries removed and shipped separately under dangerous-goods rules; sea freight is more permissive but still documented; and a shipment can be refused or delayed at the carrier's desk if the paperwork is wrong. Establish early which batteries the equipment contains and how the seller ships them; discovering the issue at the airport warehouse converts a freight question into a project delay.
Insurance and the arrival inspection
Carrier liability is limited by convention and rarely approaches a robot's value; project cargo insurance is the real cover, and its exclusions deserve the same reading as its premium — inadequate packing is a standard reason claims fail, which is another argument for the photographed packing record. On arrival, inspect before signing clean receipt where the term allows it, photograph the crate and indicators before opening, and record exceptions on the delivery documents at the dock, not in an email next week. Power-up and calibration checks should follow the seller's commissioning sequence; transport damage to a reducer often announces itself as noise or backlash only under test, which is why arrival acceptance and the final payment milestone are usually linked in well-drawn contracts.
The document set
Assemble before the ship sails: commercial invoice and packing list matching the crate contents item by item, certificate of origin where duties or preferences depend on it, the transport document (bill of lading or air waybill), insurance certificate, and the technical file the destination's customs or the buyer's compliance may request. Serial numbers on documents must match the plates on the machines — a trivial-sounding check that clears more customs desks than any other in this list.
Frequently asked questions
Which Incoterm is best for buying a robot from overseas?
There is no universal best; there is a match between the term and the buyer's capability. Terms like EXW leave freight, insurance and risk with the buyer from the seller's door; DAP/DDP place the journey on the seller at a price. What matters is that the term is named in the contract and the insurance matches the risk the buyer actually carries.
How should a robot arm be packed for sea freight?
Locked in its transport posture with axis braces, bolted to a rigid crate or skid, protected by a sealed moisture barrier with desiccant, and fitted with shock and tilt indicators that are photographed at loading. Controllers, pendants and batteries ship as separately protected line items.
Is the carrier's liability enough if a robot is damaged in transit?
Almost never. Carrier liability is capped by international conventions at amounts far below a robot's value. Buyers and sellers rely on project cargo insurance — and should read its exclusions, since inadequate packing is a common ground for refusing claims.
What should be checked when the crate arrives?
Photograph the crate and its shock/tilt indicators before opening, note any visible damage on the delivery documents at the dock, verify serial numbers against the paperwork, and follow the seller's power-up and calibration sequence — gear damage from transport shock may only appear under test.