suttle

Suttle is the net weight of cargo after you remove the weight of its immediate container or packaging, but before any further deductions for waste or damage allowances are made. In a shipyard or marine context, this term matters when goods arrive in barrels, crates, boxes, or other vessels that must be weighed separately and subtracted from the gross weight to establish what you actually received.

The calculation runs: gross weight minus tare (the container itself) equals suttle. Suttle then becomes the starting point for any additional allowances. If tret is allowed, that deduction applies to the suttle weight, not the gross. This layering of terms reflects the old mercantile practice of weighing at multiple stages to catch losses and verify honest dealing in long supply chains.

Practical use in receiving and billing

When a shipyard receives bulk materials, oil, minerals, or provisions in drums, bins, or other carriers, the receiving scales record gross weight first. The tare of the empty container is either weighed separately or looked up from records if the container is a standard size or serial number. Subtracting tare from gross gives suttle, which forms the basis of the invoice and inventory record. If the contract specifies a tret allowance for natural shrinkage or spillage, that percentage is applied to the suttle weight, not gross.

The distinction matters in dispute resolution. A supplier and buyer may agree that 2 percent tret is allowable on certain goods. The buyer must know whether that allowance applies to suttle or gross; applied to suttle, it yields a smaller deduction, and vice versa. Marine contracts often specify tret on suttle explicitly to avoid ambiguity.

Suttle has largely faded from use in modern containerized shipping and automated warehousing, where weight data is captured digitally and tare is recorded at the point of first weighing. However, it remains active in breakbulk operations, shipyard material receipt, and any trade dealing with reusable drums, pallets, or specialized carriers where the container itself is weighed as a separate operation and the allowances are negotiated separately.