23 May 2022
 Categories: , Blog

If you've bought a sturdy, flat top trailer as a useful piece of equipment for your haulage or transportation business, you'll want to make sure that it is ready for the job. You may have a number of potential uses for this trailer and some significant equipment items to move from one point to another, so you need to pay close attention to load security. You may also need to look at the trailer and figure out if you need to add any accessories to prepare for all eventualities and be ready to go. What additional items should you consider here?

Preparing to Tow

When transporting anything of this nature by road, the most important rule is to ensure proper security. You need to focus on tiedown requirements as required by federal or state legislation and be aware of how the forces of gravity and movement can dictate your approach.

Weight Distribution and Force Management

Generally speaking, a secure system has to distribute the weight of the item properly on the trailer but be able to withstand the significant forces that can arise during transportation. After all, the load may tend to shift forward when the brakes are applied or move towards the rear when the driver shifts gears or speeds up. In addition, there will be a sideways force when the rig makes a lane change or executes a turn and even an upward force when dealing with uneven surfaces. It's important to ensure that the security system can repeatedly deal with all of those forces, and the tiedown mechanism must consider the overall cargo weight.

Load Security

Pay specific attention to the rules in your jurisdiction to see if laws dictate the number of tiedown straps or chains. If so, each chain or strap has to be properly rated, and you also need to ensure that you have the appropriate number of tiedown points.

Additional Tiedown Points

Most flat top trailers today come with a certain number of tiedown points as standard, and these are carefully engineered so that they will put up with a lot of stress. Yet to be safe, you should think about adding additional tiedown points. This will allow you to carry different configurations as and when needed and always have options that ensure your load is legally secured.

Getting Your Accessories

Talk with your trailer manufacturer about additional tiedown points. They will provide you with the equipment and may help you to get everything installed correctly.