A dock leveler in the closed/stored position is level with buildings inside finished floor.
When an incoming truck backs into position at the loading dock the bed of the truck is usually level. The dock leveler is cycled, the deck raises and the lip assembly extends, the platform then lowers and the extended lip assembly rests on the bed of the truck. The truck is now ready to be loaded or unloaded.
In some circumstances the truck bed is not level with the finished floor level, this could be caused by a buildup of snow or ice, uneven exterior grade etc.
When the dock leveler is cycled the deck raises and the lip assembly extends, the platform lowers and the extended lip assembly contacts the bed of the uneven truck bed.
The dock leveler deck assembly twists or flexes laterally up to 4” in either direction to ensure the lip assembly rests flat on the truck bed. The back of the deck assembly remains flat and level to the building floor, that lateral flex feature in Pentalift dock levelers is referred to as deck cant.
Dock leveler deck cant is demonstrated at the 4:14 minute of this video. Without deck cant one end of the hinged lip assembly contacts the uneven bed of the truck, the high side.
This creates a gap between the truck bed and the lip assembly on the low side of the truck bed making it difficult to load or unload the truck. This gap can create a trip hazard, a potential pinch point and also potentially cause damage to product being unloaded, the lift truck, pallet truck etc.
For additional information on any Pentalift product please contact the Pentalift Sales Department.