Who Performs Devanning: Roles and Teams That Unpack Your Shipments

Devanning — the process of removing cargo from shipping containers, trailers or pallets — relies on a coordinated team. Who does the actual work matters because safe, accurate devanning reduces damage, speeds order fulfillment and preserves supply chain continuity. This article explains the typical roles involved, the skills and certifications they need, how organizations staff devanning operations, and practical tips for creating an effective devanning team.

Core operational roles

• Material handlers / warehouse operatives: These frontline workers perform the physical tasks: opening containers, removing cartons and palletized goods, handling totes, moving items to staging areas, and preparing goods for inspection or putaway. They typically operate pallet jacks and hand tools, and often assist with basic scanning and labelling.
• Forklift operators / reach truck drivers: Essential when cargo is on pallets, skids or stacked inside a container. Certified operators handle heavy lifting, pallet transfers, and staging at dock doors. Their skills are crucial to minimize damage during transfers.
• Stevedores / longshoremen: At ports and container yards these specialized workers handle loading and unloading of containers from ships and trailers. In many regions stevedores perform the initial devanning or transfer to a yard where further devanning occurs.
• Receiving clerks / inventory clerks: Responsible for inspection, counting, scanning barcodes or RFID, and matching physical receipts to paperwork and electronic manifests. They create receipt records in the WMS and flag discrepancies for follow-up.
• Quality control / QA inspectors: Inspect shipments for visible damage, contamination, labeling errors, or incorrect quantities. For regulated goods (food, chemicals, pharmaceuticals) QC staff verify packaging integrity and documentation like Certificates of Analysis.
• Supervisors / dock managers: Oversee the devanning process, coordinate teams, manage exceptions (e.g., damage reports), and keep operations aligned with KPIs and SLAs. They also liaise with carriers and customers when issues arise.
• Customs brokers / compliance officers: For international shipments that require customs clearance, brokers review import documentation and may be present to supervise devanning in bond or at bonded warehouses until duties are paid and clearance granted.
• Third-party logistics (3PL) and contract staff: Many companies outsource devanning to 3PL providers who supply trained labor, equipment and standard operating procedures. Temporary or seasonal staff are common for peaks like retail holidays.

Specialist roles for particular cargo types

• Cold-chain handlers: For refrigerated or frozen goods, devanning staff must be trained in temperature-sensitive handling, use insulated PPE and operate in cold rooms while ensuring records of temperature logs.
• Hazmat-trained personnel: Dangerous goods require staff with hazardous materials handling certifications, special PPE and strict documentation protocols.
• Electronics / fragile goods handlers: These staff use ESD protection, delicate handling techniques and strict packing/unpacking procedures.

Skills and certifications

Typical devanning competencies include safe lifting techniques, forklift and reach truck certification, basic mechanical skills for operating dock equipment, and familiarity with barcoding and WMS interfaces. For regulated items, staff may also need food safety (e.g., HACCP) or hazardous materials training. Soft skills — attention to detail, good communication and basic problem-solving — prevent costly mistakes.

Staffing models and outsourcing

Organizations choose staffing models based on volume and variability. Dedicated in-house teams suit businesses with consistent, predictable inbound volumes and sensitive product lines. Outsourcing to a 3PL or using temporary labor can be more cost-efficient during seasonal peaks or for companies without the capital to maintain equipment and training. Hybrid models — an in-house core team augmented by contractors — are common.

Practical best practices for teams

1. Use clear role definitions and checklists so each person knows responsibilities (e.g., who documents damage vs who moves goods).
2. Cross-train staff to cover peaks and absenteeism; many successful operations rotate people between receiving, scanning and forklift duties.
3. Enforce safety and PPE standards; regular refresher training reduces incidents and damage.
4. Integrate receiving staff with WMS and scanning tools to capture data at the point of devanning — this improves accuracy and traceability.
5. Plan staffing based on carrier ETAs, appointment slots and historical arrival patterns to avoid congestion and overtime.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Undercounting the need for certified forklift operators during large unloads.
• Poor documentation handoffs between stevedores, yard staff and warehouse teams leading to missing or duplicated receipts.
• Insufficient training for temperature- or hazard-sensitive cargo.

Example scenario

An e-commerce 3PL receives a 40-foot container of mixed retail goods. The port stevedores move the container to the 3PL yard. At the 3PL, a supervisor assigns a team: two forklift operators for pallet loads, three material handlers to break down cartons, one receiving clerk to scan and enter SKU counts into the WMS, and a QA inspector to sample-item checks for external damage. A customs broker waits nearby for a clearance update for several restricted SKUs. The coordinated effort reduces dwell time and gets inventory available for picking within hours.

In short, devanning is not a one-person job. It’s a defined set of tasks performed by a team with complementary skills — from heavy equipment operators to detail-oriented clerks — and benefits enormously from clear roles, training, and integrated systems.