The Building Safety Act has implications that reach beyond high-risk residential buildings — including areas of the materials handling industry such as racking structures, mezzanines, dock levellers and related installations. ALEM, in association with the British Materials Handling Federation (BMHF), was pleased to welcome Evan Solemn, Associate Director – Health & Safety Services at AtkinsRéalis, to a recent online presentation, round table and discussion where he explained the key legislative changes and what they mean for businesses, duty holders, designers and principal designers. The session covered the Building Safety Act and associated changes to Building Regulations, implications for duty holders, responsibilities around design and construction, practical considerations for the industry and an opportunity for discussion and questions.
This article was first published in the November 15th 2026 issue of Warehouse & Logistics News, subscribe to the magazine by clicking here.
Hörmann has launched the new HTL3 dock leveller, a next-generation modular solution designed to deliver greater flexibility for both new-build and refurbishment projects while making installation and maintenance simpler. Building on decades of Hörmann engineering expertise, the HTL3 combines high-strength steel construction with a redesigned telescopic lip and improved resistance to lane grooves, providing durability and reliable performance in demanding loading environments. Independently tested to EN 1398, the HTL3 modular platform provides a robust solution for new-build loading facilities as well as the replacement and refurbishment of existing dock infrastructure and is available in three versions.
Doncaster-based Transdek has successfully supplied and installed a Vehicle-to-Ground (V2G) lift at Next’s South Elmsall distribution centre, near Wakefield. The lift supports a newly built warehouse extension designed to meet the retailer’s growing demand for online fulfilment. Designed for modern, agile logistics, the V2G lift provides level-access loading and unloading for a full range of vehicles, from small vans to single and double-deck trailers.
In the push to transform supply chain agility and responsiveness, the loading bay is now under the spotlight, with organisations looking both for rapidly improved performance through automation and essential insight to join up the final component in the end-to-end supply chain management view. While many warehouse and production operations have achieved high levels of automation, leveraging immediate data capture through IoT and RFID to deliver real-time insight, the loading bay remains a notable blind spot. The vast majority of organisations still endure manual unloading and loading processes that are both slow and completely invisible to the rest of the supply chain operation, says Wouter Satijn, Chief Revenue Officer at Joloda Hydraroll.
Once a business has identified the need for a yard ramp, the next decision is whether to purchase the equipment outright or consider a rental option. Through Thorworld’s RentARamp service, customers can hire container loading ramps in 7,000kg, 10,000kg and 12,000kg capacities. Hire periods range from one month to five years, making rental suitable for short-term projects as well as longer-term business needs.
Any business operating a loading bay needs to keep on top of the legislative changes to ensure they are meeting the latest safety standards.
George Simpson
Features Editor
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