What capacity do you really need in your steel yard ramps?

The capacity of your steel yard ramps means more than just the amount of weight they can carry. Capacity also refers to the type of motion they can handle – from walking to driving to being able to use lifting machines, capacity can be very different in each instance. Capacity and load type can combine to change what you are looking for in your yard ramps a great deal. Taking the time to figure it out first can help you be prepared for anything.

Know the range of your load

The range of your load needs to go from the lightest use you expect on the ramp, to the heaviest. Don't ignore the light use – such as a single person using the ramp to walk onto a platform. That light weight use is going determine the type of tread that you need on your ramps. A sanded tread can keep workers safe on the ramp, a metal tread can be better for just tire traction. You should also consider your seasons and the elements the ramps will be exposed to when selecting their material and tread type.

What width?

Width is important. You can opt for individual track style ramps that will catch the tires of the equipment, but in most cases, yard work requires a full deck ramp. The width needs to accommodate the machine used to get on and off the platform, even if that machine is just a manual wheelbarrow. It should also be wide enough to hold the machine and allow for a worker to stand on each side of it. That is the ideal, but not always a possible reality. You do want at least 6 inches on each side of the wheel since it is rare that loads are carried off perfectly straight.

Height and reach

It goes almost without saying to make sure that the height of your steel yard ramps can meet the expected height of the truck bed or platform. You need to make sure that you take into account any differences in height that can occur from a truck bed being under load as well. The one thing that most people skip in an effort to save out of pocket expense is buying the ramp with the right reach. Reach is the length of the ramp from apex to ground. The longer the reach, the gentler the slope. This isn't just about being gentle, reach will determine what type of machine, and how much it can carry on the ramp. Make sure to have your engineers check, or use the online charts to select the right reach for your expected workload.

Portable or standing?

The last thing you need to determine about your steel yard ramps is whether or not they should be portable or standing. Portable can mean many different things. A portable ramp may be hinged so it can fold, or come apart in sections, or even have wheels on it for ease of transport. Portable doesn't always mean that it can be lifted by hand or transported in a small pickup. Standing, or fixed, ramps also come in a large variety. There are free standing ones with feet cast into the supports, and there are ones in which you have to provide a concrete footing to install too.



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You Don’t Need a Loading Dock Thanks to Steel Yard Ramps

If your company’s business model involves large trucks either loading or unloading lots of product efficiently, you may think you need at least one loading dock to keep things moving. However, if you’ve looked into that option, you probably know it’s going to cause you a lot of initial overhead. Fortunately for many companies in your situation, when they review all their options, they find that steel yard ramps can do everything they need and much more. So before you go wasting your budget on building that loading dock, consider the following about steel yard ramps.

Versatile

For one thing, there’s no way a loading dock can compete with yard ramps in terms of versatility. Once you install a loading dock, that’s where it stays forever. That’s also at the height it stays, too. So if you have a truck that needs that dock, but isn’t able to meet its height, you’re in for a problem. At the very least, you’re looking at added time to the transition.

Yard ramps, however, are built to be moved around and used in a temporary capacity. That’s why so many companies use them even though they have loading docks on the premises. If the above scenario happens, you can work around it with a yard ramp. If the loading dock needs to be shut down completely for some reason or a truck is using it when another is ready, simply move your yard ramp into place and business continues as planned.

Affordable

Some companies need daily deliveries, but not enough to necessitate paying to install a loading dock. If they don’t know any better, they can end up altering their building and making an investment that could take years to pay off.

Fortunately, yard ramps made from steel are far more affordable. Plus, as we covered, you’re not losing anything at the price. So when a loading dock makes sense but is going to cause economic hardship for your company, look into how much you could save by going with yard ramps instead.

Safer Transitions

Without a loading dock, workers are climbing in and out of the truck in order to move product. They may form an assembly line to unload, too. Either way, workers are putting themselves at risk. Aside from accidents that could happen, there’s also a good chance they’ll incur injuries over the long term, ones that could force them to miss days in the future or simply work at a much slower pace.

Having a ramp makes manually loading or unloading a truck so much safer. It’s also the safe alternative if you’re using a forklift and don’t have a perfect transition between the truck bed and the loading surface. Steel yard ramps can easily support a forklift, and they’re durable enough to put up with all the wear and tear that goes with them.

Don’t think a loading dock is your only option simply because you depend on trucks for your business to run. Yard ramps made from steel deliver just as many, if not more, advantages.

You can find Steel Yard Ramps with superior safety features at Yard Ramp Rental. You can buy or lease a yard ramp today. In context to visit original article Click Here.