Preventative maintenance for dock equipment is highly recommended. The more you maintain your dock equipment, the better and longer your equipment will last. Regular maintenance increases employee safety, helps to control repair costs and assists in avoiding company down times. When unexpected maintenance occurs, it can have a long chain of unexpected delays by stopping goods from entering or leaving a facility. Maintaining your equipment on a regular basis can minimize these delays and improve ... Read More
Air bag lift tables are limited in their vertical travel. You cannot get an air bag style lift table with a vertical travel greater than 24”. If more than 24” of vertical travel is required, a hydraulic lift table with an air motor is available. An air bag lift table also does not offer a velocity fuse as an option. In the case that an air bag was to be punctured or cut, the table would drop to floor level. Air Bag lift tables are limited to 6,000 lbs maximum capacity as standard and are als... Read More
FRL stands for Filter Regulator and Lubricator. In some applications, depending on vertical travel, an air bag lift table will not be suitable. The alternative is a hydraulic lift table with an air motor operated power unit. It requires compressed air to operate this motor and there are some maintenance factors to maintain efficient operation of the motor. These components are often referred to as an FRL. F – Filter: compressed air that has a high moisture content which is best to remove befor... Read More
All manufacturers have a standard paint colour that is for brand identity or for economy of scale in any high volume manufacturing facility. Pretty much any colour other than the manufacturer’s standard is available, but at an upcharge. The reason for this upcharge is due to the purchasing process, receiving process and manufacturing process. Depending on the colour of the paint, primer may need to be added to the lift table before the paint is applied. When painting a lift table a custom colo... Read More
If you have both a hydraulic dock leveler and an overhead door in the closed position and try to operate the dock leveler, the power of the dock leveler will damage the locked overhead door. If you have a vertical storing dock leveler in the rest (vertical) position and try and operate (lower) it when an overhead door is in the closed position, the dock will cause severe damage by impacting with the overhead door. In order to ensure that the dock leveler will not be able to operate when the over... Read More
Self-contained power units cost less and are the most common, however, there are alternatives. Remote power units are one of the alternatives and are best suited for wash down applications. When periodic maintenance is required, it is easier to access a remote power unit. At the time of installation, remote power units are typically installed 7’ – 8’above finished floor level on a wall mounting bracket. This moves the power unit up and away from potential impact. The hydraulic hoses are th... Read More
There are pros and cons to low profile dock lifts and conventional pit model dock lifts. Low profile dock lifts do not have to be installed in a pit. They are equipped with an approach ramp and surface installed. This serves as an advantage because there is no pit construction required and if the dock lifts needs to move to a different location, it can be easily accomplished. This being said, a low profile dock lift cannot handle the same capacity as a conventional pit installed dock lift. Low p... Read More
Not all applications are the same. In some cases, vehicle restraints are a part of the initial construction design process. It is also quite common to add vehicle restraints to an existing loading dock to improve the safety at this busy area of the facility. The positioning of the trailer’s rear impact guard can vary from trailer manufacturers. This has created the requirements for low profile vehicle restraints. Some facilities are able to cost justify mechanical vehicle restraints as an impr... Read More
The biggest risk commercial goods face is being damaged in transit. The jerky movement of the vehicle increases the chances of the goods arriving at their destination in damaged condition. Dunnage airbags are designed to lessen the impact of this movement and preserve the integrity of the merchandise. This is crucial for saving time and money, and in an increasingly competitive industry, you cannot afford to lose valuable goods in transit. Dunnage bags provide a number of benefits and it is good... Read More