When thinking loading bays perhaps the first thought that comes to mind is dock levellers and for good reason as this is often the most critical part of the loading bay MHE scene but how often is this kit inadequately specified, future proofed and maintained? It seems there is much room for improvement.
Robust maintenance schemes, for example, have often taken a back seat though leading kit suppliers report big improvements here.
Time is always of the essence and according to a recent survey by the Andersen Group costcutting is still the strongest driver for logistics development. Since time is money it is important that loading bay operations are not only supported by correctly specified dock levellers, allied with appropriate cost-saving doors and seals, but whether or not the operation can be automated, always consonant, of course, with the highest levels of safety.
One caveat when buying, however, is to beware of buying on the cheapest quote because it could turn out to be the most costly, resulting in leveller failure after a short period. This should not be a problem with the leading equipment suppliers and members of the Association of Loading and Elevating Equipment Manufacturers (ALEM) but buyers should give the potential suppliers full information on the loading bay operation and likely changes to cope with new B2C market developments, like online shopping. One trend recently, for example, is the move to smaller lift trucks with smaller wheels and thus higher wheel point loads which could damage low quality leveller steel decks. If thinking of handling heavier loads then be sure to specify double lifting cylinders and anti-twist platforms.
Another trend could affect the decision between buying swing lip or telescopic lip dock levellers.
While the swing lip design remains the most common type of leveller, the telescopic version has several advantages. Its longer lip means the lip extension is highly variable so that it can be safely used to serve vehicles that have not reversed sufficiently to make contact with the dock’s bumpers.
Moreover, their lips can be segmented so that they are able to serve much narrower vans used for home deliveries, thus giving the leveller a future-proofed advantage. A significant advantage of the telescopic is that they can allow loading of vehicles almost right up to the edge of the truck’s deck, thereby ensuring maximum space usage.
It has been said that automated, one-shot vehicle loading systems, like those from Actiw Systems, are low lying fruit and although they have been around for decades they remain largely neglected. In western Europe only about 30% of warehouses that could be viable for automation are automated. In any cost justification exercise the familiar 80-20 rule applies. Automated dock systems are best suited to handling the main material stream, backed up by conventional dock levellers to provide the flexibility if needs be. Understandably, one-shot lorry loading systems, in which an entire 40ft trailer could be loaded in four minutes, are not initially cheap but potential users may not fully realize the benign cost impact on their business. For example, depending on lorry journey times between warehouse and destinations, it is not uncommon to see loading bay automation to cut 75% of the cost associated with loading, yielding a competitive payback. The eyewatering savings can be extensive and not always immediately obvious. The shorter the delivery routes the more the loading/unloading times are emphasised. In, say, one-hour journey times, turnaround times could be reduced to one third.
This would mean MHE fleets could be cut by 33% and the number of conventional dock levellers by up to 67%. Safety, product damage and order accuracy would also be improved. Even if lorry journey times average four hours, the automation can still prove worthwhile. The Actiw and Loadmatic systems do not require any trailer or container modification and are compatible with both palletised and nonpalletised loads.
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