When choosing a loading ramp or dock leveller, it’s always important to check the maximum allowable weight it can safely carry (i.e. its capacity, or rated load). This is defined in the relevant BS EN Standard as the weight of the greatest moving load (including goods, persons and transport equipment for goods) for which the equipment is designed.
In the case of counterbalanced forklift trucks, the weight is typically transferred through the front “single axle”; particularly when loaded close to the truck’s capacity, and when under braking. Therefore, Uniformly Distributed Load (UDL) is not necessarily the maximum load a ramp can safely carry, and it is important that this is understood. Companies who indicate that the capacity of a ramp for counterbalanced forklift truck use is equivalent to its Uniform Distributed Load (UDL), are potentially misleading.
The importance of this distinction when specifying a loading ramp for use with forklift trucks cannot be overstated. Ignore the Single-Axle Load – which refers to the maximum allowable weight on a single axle of a vehicle / fork truck – and you’re putting employees and equipment at risk.
Some ramps, in essence, may have two weight limits specified that they can carry: Uniform Distributed Load; and Single-Axle Load. The former is based on the load being spread out evenly over the ramp. The latter is usually a lower number, and reflects the greater forces involved when weight transfer occurs on a forklift to the front axle.
To give a practical example: a ramp with a Uniform Distributed Load (UDL) of 10 tonnes, may only have a single-axle load capacity of 9 tonnes. If your fork truck, goods and operator weigh 9.5 tonnes combined, you may expect that you are safe to use the ramp, but in some circumstances, this load may exceed the single axle capacity, and therefore overload the ramp.
It is therefore vital to make sure you choose a ramp strong enough to withstand this load. If the weight of the load being carried by the forklift exceeds the maximum Single-Axle Load of the ramp, it can result in serious damage to the equipment and potentially even injury to the operator.
If in doubt, we always recommend that you double-check the manufacturer’s specifications for the ramp. Be assured that, at Thorworld Industries, we have always rated our equipment used by counterbalanced forklift trucks based on a Single-Axle Load (SWL).
