Crate spec ticket
| Outer crate | Plywood-walled crate on a skid, cleated at the corners |
|---|---|
| Interior | Fitted padding with archival-safe contact layers per your conservator |
| Humidity | Buffering material and a sealed layer where specified |
| Closure | Screwed lid for repeated opening and closing |
| Marks | Fragile, this-side-up, do-not-stack, keep-dry pictograms |
| Lumber | Plywood exempt; solid parts HT-stamped for export |
| Quote needs | Object dimensions, weight, destination, condition notes |
What museums and galleries ship
Cultural shippers move a small number of objects at a time, each with its own risks. A framed oil painting is thin and large. A bronze or marble sculpture is dense and its weight sits on a small base. A blown glass piece is fragile in every direction, and a stone slab can crack under its own weight if it lies flat.
The movements are of several kinds: exhibition loans between institutions, shipments to and from auction houses, art fair consignments, studio-to-gallery deliveries and private collector moves. Crates for these are rarely generic, because the object is not.
We cover artwork, sculpture, glass and stone slabs on their own load pages, and this page is about how a program works for the institution.
Conservators set the requirements
A museum registrar or a conservator knows what touches the object and what does not. They tell us which materials may sit against the surface, whether a framed work travels face up or on edge, and how much the object can tolerate in vibration and humidity change.
We follow the handling and condition notes you send. We do not provide conservation advice or condition reports and we do not claim museum-standard accreditation. We build the crate to the object's measurements and to the instructions of the person responsible for it.
A loan agreement may specify crate features such as a particular closure, a hinged door or a pest-free interior. Send the clause and we match the crate to it.
Humidity and the sealed interior
Paper, canvas, wood panels and many frames respond to humidity change by expanding and contracting. A rapid shift, such as a crate moving from a heated gallery to a cold truck, can crack paint or lift a veneer. The aim is to slow the change inside the crate.
Buffering materials, such as conditioned board or silica gel at a set humidity, are used in the crate along with a sealed vapour barrier layer. The choice is the conservator's, and we fit what is specified. Our glass and artwork pages explain the layout.
Acclimation matters as much as the crate. A sealed crate that is opened right away on a warm dock loses the benefit. Receivers should leave it closed until the contents reach the room's temperature.
Construction for repeated use
Exhibition crates are used again and again. The same crate may go out to the borrower, return to the lender and go out again the next year. We build with screwed or bolted lids, hinged panels and replaceable padding so that opening a crate does not damage it.
Inside, fitted padding is cut to the object and lined with a clean contact layer. Frames sit on edge in a slotted tray. Sculptures are carried on the base, never on a projecting limb. Glass is wrapped and surrounded by crush-tolerant padding on all sides.
Handling marks are stencilled on all four sides: fragile, this-side-up, do-not-stack and keep-dry, with centre-of-gravity where it applies.
Lanes, modes and export
Art moves by climate-controlled truck within the US, by air for international loans, and by ocean for large shipments of sculpture and installations. Dimensional weight rules apply to air, so the crate is built tight and light around the padding.
Plywood is exempt from ISPM 15 treatment under the NELMA summary, while solid wood skids and cleats need the HT stamp on export crates. The destination's plant-protection authority can decide what applies; check with them and APHIS when planning an international loan.
Paperwork for cultural property, customs and temporary import belongs to the shipper or their agent.
Programs for exhibitions, auctions and galleries
An exhibition means many objects, each with its own crate, going out and back on a fixed schedule. Give us a checklist with dimensions and weights, and we group crate builds so that they match the installation calendar.
A gallery that ships several works a month benefits from a stock of standard painting crates in common sizes. The spec for each size is kept on file, and a new work is matched to the nearest size.
Tell us if you want crates to be reused for the return leg, and who stores empty crates between shows.
Questions buyers ask
Do you provide condition reports or conservation advice?
No. We build the crate to the object's measurements and the instructions of the conservator or registrar who is responsible for it.
Can a crate be built for repeated loans?
Yes. Screwed lids, hinged panels and replaceable padding let a crate be opened and closed many times without damage.
How do you protect a painting from humidity change?
With buffering material and a sealed layer chosen by the conservator, inside a crate that is closed until it reaches room temperature.
Does an art crate need ISPM 15 treatment?
Plywood is exempt, and solid wood parts need the HT mark when the destination requires it. APHIS and the destination authority confirm for your lane.