As standard dock lifts are supplied with removable guard rails. At the time of manufacture the guard rails are bolted to a threaded plate that is welded to the dock lift platform. These guard rails are now removable however they require hand tools to first remove the locking bolts, 4 locking bolts per guard rail. Based on the amount of work required and the time involved removing this style of guard rail is not a common practice to do repetitively. Another option is permanent guard rails, as th... Read More
The first step when considering converting to hydraulic operation is to investigate if the dock leveler is structurally sound. In its simplest form a dock leveler is a temporary structural bridge between the building floor and the truck to be loaded. A qualified loading dock service technician should first perform a complete front to back structural inspection of the dock levelers primary components. During the inspection the technician should check the deck, beam and headboard weldments, the li... Read More
The most significant benefit of converting a mechanical dock leveler to hydraulic is the safety and ease of single push button operation at the loading dock area. Converting to hydraulic eliminates the need to repetitively bend and pull the release chain and then walk the dock leveler downward into position on the truck. When successfully converted to hydraulic operation it’s now as easy as pushing a button. Any brand of mechanical dock leveler will require an ongoing maintenance program that ... Read More
Dock levelers and dock lifts are 2 of the most common products used at a loading dock area and are generally installed into a pre-formed concrete pit. Prior to the equipment arriving at the construction site the pits are first formed. The pit curb angle is required at that time to form the pit to the manufacturer’s specified length, width and depth. The pit curb angle is manufactured from steel angle iron and has tangs or J bolts welded to the inside of the angle for the concrete to “knit”... Read More
Working with bins of bulk product can often be challenging for the machine operator. The challenges arise because of the repetitive bending and stretching required reaching down into the bin to load or unload components. In this application consider if the product bin is first loaded onto an industrial hydraulic tilter. Under operator control the bin can now be tilted into the most ergonomically correct and comfortable position for the operator to retrieve or place the components in the bin. Til... Read More
The majority of lift tables receive a sprayed on finish coat, this sprayed on finish coat often includes products such as enamel paint, epoxy paint or even cold spray galvanizing. None of these finishes can compare to the high performance coating of hot dip galvanizing. During the hot dip galvanizing process the components are first dipped into a tank of a cleaning acid solution, removed and then dipped into a separate tank containing the molten galvanizing solution. As opposed to any spray on f... Read More
Start with equipping all dock levelers at the loading dock area with weather seal to minimize costly and unwanted energy exchange. The basic dock leveler weather seal is designed to seal the side of the dock leveler deck to the pit side walls minimizing any exterior air from entering the building. Weather seals are available in a neoprene/rubber strip design or for improved sealing or they are also available is a brush style design. Either of these weather seals works well saving energy when t... Read More
Vertical Dock Levelers Improve Safety & Efficiency in Cold Storage and Climate Controlled Food Warehouses
Vertical Dock Levelers store upright. Improves efficiency so overhead door can close down to the floor. Eliminates gap that exists around pit levelers. Reduces exchange of outside air. Cold storage facilities reduce energy loss by using vertical dock levelers.
Pentalift's vertical dock leveler is designed and built for cleanliness. Temperature is maintained. Convenient push button ac... Read More
An edge of dock is an effective alternative to a manual dock plate. The equipment can easily be removed or transferred to another site. The down side of an edge of dock application is that it is only primarily designed for light duty applications involving pallet trucks or carts. The leading reason for a company to purchase an edge of dock would be because of its price and application. Edge of docks are available in both can be manual or hydraulic both being very easy to operate.
Contact a Pe... Read More
Not all Low Profile Dock Lifts are ordered with wear plates and retaining cradles but the majority definitely are. Conventional Dock Lifts have a lower steel frame assembly. This steel frame assembly serves a number of functions, 2 of which are the scissor lift leg rollers run back and forth on this steel frame when cycled and the steel frame has provision for lag bolting the dock lift into position during the installation process. To achieve the low profile dock lift feature one of the componen... Read More