Cross-docking takes place in the cross dock terminal which is a minimal space that consists of the inbound and outbound docks.
Once the inbound transportation (semi-trailer truck, railroad car, etc) has been docked, products can then be unloaded to the terminal; they then can be screened and sorted to identify its end destinations; afterwards, products will be reloaded to the outbound dock via forklift, conveyor belt, pallet truck or other means of tools before trucks, trailers, rail cars or other means of transportation deliver the parcels to customers. The products usually spend less than 24 hours at the terminal, sometimes even less than an hour.