Aluminum-Steel Dock Plates and Boards… We regularly get calls from Customer’s looking to SAFELY bridge the gap between a loading dock door and a semi trailer. Simple huh? Like most things, its not a simple as one might think. Often times a customer might think all they need a thick piece of steel plate positioned in between the dock and the trailer… Absolutely not! Talk about a disaster waiting to happen!
We sell both Dock Plates and Dock Boards, but what’s the difference? While both Loading Dock products are similar in their design and functionality, the big difference is Dock Boards have a much higher loading capacity than Aluminum Dock Plates. Aluminum Dock Plates are lighter in weight and are more for hand loading (or perhaps Pallet Jack traffic) whereas Dock Boards can carry the load of a fully loaded Forklift. They all come in 2 basic material designs, steel and aluminum.
SAFETY FIRST!
One design element that makes both of these dock loading products extremely safe for manual loading are the safety legs. These legs are generally bolted onto the bottom of the Plate/Board and is positioned in between the dock and the trailer, keeping the Plate or Board from sliding during use. The exact size and position of the legs on the Plate/Board is determined, in part by the “height differential” or the height difference between the trailer deck and the dock. This is a very important consideration when sourcing the correct size Plate/Board!
Let’s start with Aluminum Dock Plates…
- Recommended for use with non-powered loading equipment
- Hand holes are standard for portability
- Widths from 30” to 84”, Lengths from 24” to 84”
- Considerably lighter in weight than Dock Boards
- Bolt-on steel legs for securing position between the dock & the trailer
- Beveled Edges Allow for Smooth Transition
- Diamond Tread Plate is Skid Resistant
Steel Dock Boards…
- All-Welded Steel Construction
- Double-Bend Design
- Capacities from 15,000 to 40,000 lbs.
- Widths from 60″ to 96″, Lengths from 48″ to 120″
- Two Four-Hole Pin Pockets Placed on each Edge for Flexible Positioning
- Can be Used for Below Dock Applications
- Use with conventional, refrigerated, or container trailers, or for below dock conditions
We stock and sell Dock Plates, Boards and Rail Boards from leading manufacturers like Bluff Manufacturing, Vestil Manufacturing, Eagle-Justrite and Copperloy Products.
We have created a whole section with greater specifics on Dock Plates, Boards and Rail Boards… click here
Call the experts at Midwest Material Handling and let us put our 30+ years in business to work to help you source the correct size Dock Plate/Board for your unique application!
All of our Dock Boards, Plates and Rail Boards are proudly manufactured in the USA!
