Before you optimize: a practical container-loading planning checklist

1. Confirm the actual load space

Choose a container preset or enter a custom load space, then check its usable internal dimensions and payload limit against your equipment. Containers of the same general type can differ. Account for obstructions and any usable-space restrictions in the dimensions you enter.

StowNexa displays box dimensions as Width × Length × Height. Keep that order consistent when transcribing a supplier list. Choose Metric or Imperial before checking your entries to reduce unit mistakes.

2. Measure the item you will physically load

Use the external dimensions of the packed shipping unit, including packaging that remains with it. Check weight per unit and quantity separately. If two products have different packaging or orientation rules, keep them as separate cargo definitions.

• Confirm that a weight is per carton rather than the shipment total.
• Check whether a listed measurement is in inches, centimeters or millimeters.
• Remove disabled or excluded cargo from the shipment you intend to plan.
• Include pallets or other packaging in the load model when they are part of the actual shipping unit.

3. Translate handling instructions into explicit constraints

Keep Upright keeps the height vertical while allowing rotation around the vertical axis. No Rotation is more restrictive: it preserves the original orientation. Use the rule that matches the cargo, rather than treating the two controls as interchangeable.

Review stacking and floor-only requirements as well. A geometric support check is not a calculation of carton strength or crush resistance. If a product cannot carry other cargo, enter that restriction and separately verify the physical handling requirements.

4. Optimize, then inspect the whole result

Run Optimize and inspect the 3D view alongside the cargo quantities. Check the packed and unplaced counts, color-coded definitions and payload information. A plausible picture is only one part of reviewing the result.

If the result is unexpected, first check dimensions, quantity, weight, load-space limits and allowed rotations. A search that leaves cargo out does not prove that no feasible arrangement exists. Never remove a real handling restriction merely to improve a packing percentage.

5. Preserve the shipment you actually planned

Save the project and give it a name that identifies the shipment. When you change cargo or constraints, optimize again before relying on an older result. Saved Cargo on Pro helps with repeated entries, while project snapshots keep later library edits from silently changing earlier work.

Before loading, your team remains responsible for door access, handling clearances, cargo securing, structural strength, transport stability, equipment ratings and applicable rules. Computational placement is not a physical loading sequence or safety certification.