Trailer Restraints Prevent Dangerous Accidents

APS 2000Many pieces of loading dock safety equipment are very simple but effective. The trailer restraint is a good example. Trailer restraints, when properly used, can prevent accidents, injury, and even death at the loading dock. They are a great improvement on basic wheel chocks in terms of safety. Wheel chocks are useful, but they can also slip or get pushed out of position, and they have to be put into place behind the wheels. It takes only a moment to set a trailer restraint, but the damage it can prevent is great.

OSHA recommends that all drivers set their brakes, chock their wheels and/or activate the locking mechanism on the loading dock. Why is this? What kinds of accidents do trailer restraints prevent exactly?

Trailer creep

Trailer creep, or dock walk, is when the trailer edges away from the dock as a result of the impact and movement caused by forklifts going in and out of the trailer while loading and unloading. When a trailer creeps away from the dock, the forklift can fall down in the space between the dock and the trailer. This can cause damage to the forklift, injury to the forklift operator, and injury to anyone who might be working in the area of the dock.

Trailer pop-up

Trailer pop-up happens when the weight from the forklift lifts either end of the unsecured trailer. In this situation, it’s likely that someone will get hurt and product will be damaged from the shifting of the forklift and the materials inside the trailer.

Trailer tip-over

This type of accident is just what it sounds like: a trailer tips over as a result of the landing gear collapsing underneath it. A rotating hook trailer restraint can prevent trailer tip over and the damage it can cause.

Early departure

Early departure, also known as aggressive pullout, is when the driver accidentally drives the truck away while the forklift is entering, leaving, or still inside the trailer. This is another very dangerous situation that a trailer restraint will automatically prevent.

These kinds of accidents occur all over the United States every day, and workers are hurt, equipment is damaged, and product must be replaced. A trailer restraint is the answer if you are looking to prevent this from happening on your loading dock. Beuschel Sales offer three different types of trailer restraints and two different types of wheel chocks. We would be happy to offer you our expert opinion about which of these would make your loading dock the safest place it can be. As we move into another year, 2018, let’s all work together to make it the safest possible.

 

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