your guide to safe flatbed loading and unloading

Other, less obvious hazards include:

• failure to communicate with the operator of the equipment handling the load;
• not being familiar with the active workflow at a customer’s site;
• having little direction, or no direction, from a supervisor, or not having any procedures to follow;
• securing the load with an unknown or untrustworthy means;
• distractions during the loading process, such as work with the straps or chains;
• working in an area where the load could fall if it shifts, or standing in one;
• helping in processes with which the driver isn’t familiar.

Then there are the risks that come with carrying loads by road. Trailers can cause traffic accidents. If the goods in transit are dangerous, they carry the risk of spillage, which can lead to fire, explosions, chemical burn or environmental damage.

Keep the centre of gravity as low as possible. Do this by keeping heavy items on the floor and above the axles. When you’re loading upward from the bottom, keep the side-to-side distribution of the weight even, maintaining proper weight on the tongue. Always bear in mind your gross vehicle weight. Never go over your rating.

You should place about 60% of the cargo on the front half of your flatbed and 40% on the back half. Secure it with tensioning devices, chains, straps or other appropriate equipment. Flatbed trailers are often bumpy when in motion, so securing the load well is vital. If the load begins to move while you’re out on the road, you could lose control of the vehicle. A secure centre of gravity can stop this.

secure the flatbed load correctly

Check the trailer isn’t suffering from any corrosion or damage before you load anything onto it. Inspect the hold-down openings. Make sure they’re strong and have no kinks or cracks in them. The hold-downs, also known as ‘D-rings’, shouldn’t have any bends in them either and should be tight against the deck. If you notice any damage, don’t load the trailer until you’ve repaired it.

After checking the deck, confirm that it’s level. You can do this by coupling the trailer to the towing vehicle and confirming visually if it’s level.

secure the ramps

This is pretty straightforward: never unload your trailer on a slope. If you do, the cargo could shift and cause the trailer to tip over. You should also check there are no mounds or depressions, and that there’s no debris or unstable ground. This is especially the case if you’re using a forklift truck to unload your trailer.

ensure you have enough room to unload

Here we have another straightforward tip: give yourself enough room to unload the trailer. You should know where you are and have plenty of room to access the trailer bed

start at the back

When you load a trailer, you start with a pallet going up against the headboard of the trailer and load from side to side; when you unload a trailer, however, it’s the reverse: you should start at the back and unload, alternating from side to side. Note that if there’s no tractor unit attached to your trailer at the time of unloading, you’ll need to support the front end of the trailer.

When unloading or loading with a forklift truck, you should always perform the following:

• Press the horn when entering or exiting a loading bay.
• Pay attention to other vehicles, pedestrians or materials around you.
• Evaluate each load before lifting. Avoid lifting unstable loads or unsuitable ones. Loads that are leaning or haven’t been properly secured are two examples.
• Employ correct technique to prevent the trailer from tipping (i.e. keep the load balanced on the trailer).
• Keep the forks pointed downhill when travelling down a ramp, and keep them pointed uphill when travelling up one.
• Drive slowly and carefully. This can prevent damage to the forklift and trailer, helps to stop the alignment of the dock plate with the trailer from becoming disturbed and avoids shifts in the weight distribution of the trailer that could cause it to tip over.
• Stay clear of dock edges, ramp edges and railcar edges.

Our Built-in Rollerbeds are the real deal and can handle seriously heavy loads, thanks to a lifting capacity of 550 kilo per module per m. You can use this system for plastic block pallets or wooden ones, air cargo and containers. The heavy duty steel plates of the Rollertrack System allow forklift trucks or pallet trucks to ride over them when the system isn’t in use.

That being said, you’re not likely to have a forklift enter the trailer when using this system. Built-in Rollerbeds make loading and unloading safer by removing the need for forklifts to enter your trailer during your loading and unloading processes.

As is the case of the Modular Rollerbeds, you’ll also only require one or two people to conduct the loading, which reduces the number of bodies in your loading bay and reduces the risk of accidents.