Heavy Duty Truck Loading Ramps

Shipping yards and construction sites that do not have permanent docks need another method of loading up truck trailers. Truck loading ramps are excellent tools for this. You can use them to safely and quickly load up any truck no matter where you are, because they function exactly like concrete loading ramps on permanent docks—they can both forklifts and workers on foot with pallet jacks.

Different sizes of truck loading ramps exist for a wide range of applications. They are made from either steel or aluminum, but some frame loading dock ramps have steel grating on the surface for extra strength. Both steel and aluminum offer different advantages. Determining whether or not you need steel or aluminum depends on many factors such as necessary weight capacity and the amount of portability you will require. If you have any questions about which material is best for you application, and Easy Rack specialist can help you.

Steel Truck Loading Ramps
Steel ramps will service a range between 45” to 62” and can b operated by a 2 speed hand crank. Weight capacitance ranges between 15,000lbs to 30,000lbs. The most commonly used steel truck loading ramp and ramps lengths are 30’ and 36’ lengths, both of which include a number of built in safety features that include positive steel traction grating, 4” high safety curbs, safety locking chains, rubber bumpers, on overlap lip of 15”, and optional welded hand rails.

Aluminum Truck Loading Ramps
Aluminum truck loading ramps can be ordered in 30ft straight incline or 36ft. incline with 6ft. level off. Weight capacities range from 16,000 lbs to 30,000 lbs. They are simple and safe units to use thanks to a number of beneficial features. A single worker can adjust the height with a hydraulic hand pump. The ramp is stabilized by rubber shock absorbers. Fork truck can move the ramp around the shipping yard by hooking up to an optional tow bar that you can have ordered with the unit. Every aluminum ramp comes with safety anchor chains, and custom steel grating can be fitted to the ramp if necessary.

Mobility
Many different tire types, including pneumatic tires, can be fitted to truck loading ramp. OSHA and ANSI call for all loading ramps to be attached to the truck with bolt locking chains prior to use. They can also be fitted with toe bars to allow forklifts to move them. In other instances, different accessories may need to be added to the ramp to allow a variety of vehicles to move it around the yard. These include loading dock levelers, towbar hitches, loops, and forklift pickup slots that we can install upon request.

Easy Rack carries a wide variety of used pallet racks, commercial shelving, material handling equipment, commercial lighting,and modular prefab buildings installed nationwide. If you can not find what you are looking for call us toll free at 1-888-776-3720 and we will find it for you.

Our home office is located in Houston, Texas with warehouses located throughout the United States that enable us to service all 50 states including New York NY, Los Angeles CA, Miami, FL. Chicago, IL. Denver CO., New Orleans, La., Cleveland, Ohio, Kansas City, Mo., Mesa, Arizona, Virginia Beach, Va., Omaha, Nebraska, Oakland, California, Miami, Florida, Tulsa, Oklahoma, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Colorado Springs, Colorado, Arlington, Texas, Beaumont, Tx.

Wheel Risers

What are wheel risers?
Wheel risers are special ramps that fit underneath the wheels of smaller trucks. Many smaller vehicles, such city bobtails, can be as low as 47”—approximately 3”-5” lower than the standard dock height. Wheel risers have to be placed under these trucks in order to make them higher than the docks. This is because it is much safer to drive a forklift up a ramp, and loading ramps themselves are more stable when the sloping portion of the ramp remains in the dock and the break over fits in the truck. Otherwise, the dockboard has to be reversed, with the sloping side of the board going into the back of the truck. This is both unsafe and in many cases impractical, because if the truck is full there will not be enough room for the board to go into the trailer bed.

How does a wheel riser work?
It basically lifts up the back of the truck so that its trailer bed is now higher than the edge of the dock, allowing it to be loaded like an over the road truck. If you have a 50 inch high dock and a 47 inch high bobtail, 5” wheel risers will make the bobtail 2” higher than the dock, allowing you to use your dockboard or dock plate as intended just as you would when loading a larger vehicle.

When do you need a wheel riser then?
During the course of the day, loading dock crews are driving fork trucks up the dockboard at an average of 2” into an over the road trailer. If on occasions a smaller truck pulls up and you have to reverse your dockboard, this can be done safely if you are very careful. However, if throughout the day you are CONSISTENTLY having to go down from the dock to the truck, you really need steel wheel risers to elevate the truck high enough to create an incline equivalent to that of an over the road truck.

This will then allow you to keep the long side of the board inside the building and position the ramp as it is meant to work. We have many sizes of wheel risers available to accommodate your application. Manufactured in both steel and aluminum, they come in a variety of sizes and capacities that start at 30,000 lbs. We sell units as high as 12” in height that you can order from your material handling specialist, and widths range from 18” to 24” across to provide a stable, sturdy support for truck tires.

What all does Easy Rack sell other than loading dock equipment?
Easy Rack has a wide variety of new & used pallet racks, material handling equipment, commercial lighting, used pallet racks, and modular buildings installed nationwide. If you can not find what you are looking for call us toll free at 1-888-776-3720 and we will find it for you.

Our home office is located in Houston, Texas with regional distribution centers located in all 50 States including New York NY, Los Angeles CA, Miami, FL. Chicago, IL. Denver CO., Dallas TX, San Antonio, TX, Austin, TX, Boise ID, Atlanta GA, Albuquerque NM, Raleigh-Durham NC, Washington DC, Albuquerque NM, Huntsville AL, Fayetteville AR, Norfolk VA & Madison WI.

Dock Plates

What are dock plates?
Dock plates are lightweight loading dock ramps designed to be very portable and easy for one person to position. Their primary function is to provide a bridge for non-powered material handling equipment such as pallet jacks, hand trucks, platform trucks, and dollies. Some can support weights of up to 12,000 pounds, but they are NEVER to be used for a forklift or any kind of motorized vehicle support.

Are dock plates the same as dock boards?
Dock plates look similar dockboards and also work as bridges between the surface of an elevated loading dock and the back of a trailer car. However, dock plates are designed only for hand-operated handling tools that are dock boards. Dockboards are heavy duty loading ramps that are usually made from steel. They are designed for forklift and other motorized vehicle traffic to and from the surface of an elevated dock.

Are dock plates steel or aluminum?
Easy Rack Dock plates are manufactured made from diamond deck aluminum that is extra strong and helps prevent water, oil, debris, and snow from piling up on the plate. Diamond deck aluminum provides traction for both work boots and pallet jack wheels, and it makes the unit a great deal sturdier. Aluminum dock plates are easy for one person to handle because of their light weight. For manual positioning, it is best that you use an EZ-Roll to wheel the plate into place. When you are using a forklift to position the unit, you can wrap safety chains around it that allow it to be lifted, moved, and lowered into place.

How do I determine what weight capacity I need?
To determine the correct weight capacity, add the weight of your largest material handling device to the maximum load you will be transporting. Find a dock plate whose weight capacity exceeds this total amount. This is a common sense precaution against possible overloading on the part of workers in a hurry. People do not always pay attention to how many items they stack on a hand truck or pallet jack, so it is always a good idea to use a dock plate that is stronger than what is apparently needed.

How do I select the correct dimensions?
To determine dock plate width, add 8” to the total overall width of the load and equipment. For example, the most common sized pallet is 48” L X 40” W. Adding 8” to the width determines dock plate size to be 48”. This calculation works with both hand trucks and pallet jacks regardless of the materials loaded. Length calculation is a bit more complicated. Each dock plate has what is called a “maximum height differential” that refers to the difference between the maximum height of the loading dock and the truck floor. The shorter the board is; the more limited its use. The longer the board, the greater the number of dock applications it can be used for.

Do you have used equipment?
Yes. In fact, anything you find on our website we can locate in good, used condition. Used aluminum models can save companies up to 40% on their purchase cost. Steel dock plates can be obtained as well per special request.

Are you looking for a loading dock equipment company? Easy Rack also carries a wide variety of commercial & industrial netting, used pallet racks, commercial shelving, material handling equipment, commercial lighting,and modular prefab buildings installed nationwide.

If you can not find what you are looking for call us toll free at 1-888-776-3720 and we will find it for you.

Our main office is deep in the heart of Texas with associates located throughout the United States that enable us to service all 50 states including New York NY, Los Angeles CA, Miami, FL. Chicago, IL. Denver CO., New Orleans, La., Cleveland, Ohio, Kansas City, Mo., Mesa, Arizona, Virginia Beach, Va., Omaha, Nebraska, Oakland, California, Miami, Florida, Tulsa, Oklahoma, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Colorado Springs, Colorado, Arlington, Texas, Beaumont, Texas, Denton, TX, McKinney, Texas, Midland, TX, Killeen, Texas, Dallas TX DFW, San Antonio, TX, Austin, TX, ALBQ, NYC, LA, MPLS.

Rail Boards

What is the difference between rail boards and dock boards?
Rail boards are dock boards that have been specifically designed for rail car loading and unloading. Rail car to dock is a highly specialized application that requires its own type of dockboard. Units can range anywhere from 22K lobs on up to 40K, 60K, or even 90K.

Are your rail boards ANSI certified?
Yes. Our rail boards models are the only ANSI certified railboards on the market. They are made with special lift equipment and attachments, and they are designed with shift usage and transit cycles in mind.

What type of boxcars can rail boards be used for?
Easy Rack railboards are intended for use on all types of railway boxcars as loading ramps. Each board features an all-welded steel construction that provides a sure and reliable platform for fork truck access. Rectangular and flared design models can be ordered through your material handling account manager. Additional reinforcement for every unit is ensured by a box under structure which grounds the unit in position and increases safety. Box under structure bumpers also fit around the car latches to protect the door latch.

Each rail board comes with a heavy duty drop ring that allows it to be lowered via forklift into position. Each unit features a locking ring design that secures it to the dock, and lifting loops fold flat into recessed pockets.

What are your standard dimensions and capacities?
Due to the highly specialized nature of rail boards and yard ramps, it is necessary to custom build them around the dimensions of the railcar. The boardʼs size, features, and capacity will be differ according to whether or not it is a box car, refrigerator car, all door car, flat car, or plug door car. Your material handling specialist will also need a minimum of two X dimension measurements from the inside of the rail to the dock face to order your board. Measurements should exclude any projections, and every measurement should be taken 20' away from the center of the dock board position.

It is critical to provide dimensions for each location in which the dock board will be used. If the board is used along a long, open dock, provide X dimensions at 20' increments as well. Next, make line level and string measurement of at least Y dimension measurement from the top of the rail to the top of the dock for each rail board location.

A few pieces of data can be gathered by answering a series of simple yes/no questions and by taking some basic measurements prior to placing a call. Having this information ready will enable our manufacturing facility to ensure that the dockboard has the proper width, length, bends, capacity, and understructure for maximum performance and safety.

Easy Rack carries a full compliment of edge dock levelers, yard ramps, dockboards, safety netting, parking lot lighting, used pallet racks, used commercial shelving and many other material handling carts and supplies. Click here to obtain a free quote!

Where are you located?
Our home office is located in Houston, Texas with warehouses located throughout the United States that enable us to service all 50 states including Dallas Texas, Washington DC, Nashville-Davidson, Tennessee, Las Vegas, Nevada. Portland, Oregon, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Tucson, Arizona, Long Beach, California, Atlanta, Georgia, Fresno, California, Sacramento, Ca.

Contact us toll free 888-776-3720 and let us build or install something for you!

Yard Ramps

What is a yard ramp?
It is a type of loading dock ramp that allows a forklift to enter a shipping containers or truck trailer in from a facility that lacks an elevated loading dock or it allows a forklift to move from an elevated dock onto the ground. Pneumatic wheels on the ramp allows it to be moved into place by fork trucks, and hydraulic pumps built into the unit enable workers to position it at the precise height of a truck trailer bed, rail car, or loading dock.

What features to Easy Rack yard ramps have?
All commercial ramps (both dock to ground and ground to truck) are manufactured with an all steel welded construction. Weight capacities vary from 16,000 to 60,000 pounds and a wide range of length and width sizes available. Serrated grating gives the ramp excellent traction and prevents water, snow, oil, grease and miscellaneous debris from building up. The lower end approach plate provides maximum support and smooth transition onto the ramp grating surface. Heavy-duty formed steel side girders provide main load-bearing capability, and deep side members prevent forklift runoff.

What are yard ramps used for?
Yard ramps are essential for any warehouse or factory that was built without an elevated dock ramp. They allow work crews to bridge the gap between the building and the trailer and safely move supplies off the truck by forklifts. This is much more convenient, quicker, and more cost effective than unloading and loading containers by hand. In other cases, however, the reverse may be true. A building with a large outdoor stockyard may require a forklift to move from the loading dock onto the ground to either retrieve or organize supplies outdoors. This is often seen in shipyards and rail yards, and it requires a dock to ground ramp to allow vehicles to safely move from the dock to the yard.

How do I know what size yard ramp to choose?
The size of the ramp you purchase will depend upon a number of factors relative to the weight of the heaviest forklift and the heaviest load being moved along the ramp. Easy Rack recommends you select a unit that is three times the rated capacity of the lift truck it supports. Rail yards require a 36’ unit that includes a level off. Standard dock to ground units typically measure 30’ straight. When deciding on the width of the yard ramp to use, it should always be 15” wider than the widest equipment moved along its surface.

Can yard ramps be customized?
Yes. In fact, we recommend that any organization working multiple shifts and who are moving a wide variety of material types and equipment contact a specialist to discuss additional components that can be used to increase the stability, safety, and functionality of these units. These customization options include, but are not limited to, safety chains, ramp clamps, and tow bars.

Easy Rack carries a wide variety of shelves, dock loading equipment, commercial shelving, material handling equipment, commercial lighting, used pallet racks, commercial Christmas lighting and modular buildings installed nationwide.If you can not find what you are looking for call us toll free at 1-888-776-3720 and we will find it for you. Read our testimonials section, product reviews or visit our material handling blog to learn more about Easy Rack.

Our home office is located in Houston, Texas with regional distribution centers located in all 50 States including New York NY, Los Angeles CA, Miami, FL. Chicago, IL. Denver CO., Dallas TX, San Antonio, TX, Austin, TX, Boise ID, Atlanta GA, Albuquerque NM, Raleigh-Durham NC, Washington DC, Albuquerque NM, Huntsville AL, Fayetteville AR, Norfolk VA , Madison WI.