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Heavy haul trucking.

15 axles heavy haul shipment on a double drop trailer.What is heavy haul trucking? Heavy haul trucking is a general term used to describe transporting a over-weight shipment over the road by a semi-truck. It specifically implies the load is over the legal limits of weight. Typically this is anything that has a combined overall weight of 80,000 pounds (36287.39 kilograms). When excessive weight is shipped over the roads it requires additional axles. This prevents damages to the pavement such as stress cracks. Bridges also represent additional challenges for heavy haul trucking companies. If too much weight is moved over a bridge it could damage the bridge or worse collapse it. This is one reason why the federal government developed the federal bridge formula in order to protect public property as well as public safety.Heavy haul shipment being transported over the road.

As illustrated in the photo above note all of the extra axles. This serves as a way to evenly distribute the weight from the shipment to prevent road damages. Heavy haul shipments are not permitted to move during the spring time as they can cause permanent stress fractures in the road. This discovery lead to the creation of spring  frost laws which were passed primarily by Northern states and provinces in order to protect the roads and highways from permanent damage caused by heavy haul shipments. When the pavement is frozen solid it will not allow the asphalt to flex when heavy objects pass over it which in turn breaks it up. In the interest of public property damages a solution was created.

What types of trailers are used in heavy haul trucking?

Double drop heavy haul trailer.The most common type of heavy haul trailer used by the trucking industry is a flatbed oriented trailer. While other types of trailers do exist for transporting heavy objects the most common one it flat in orientation. These are usually double drop trailers or removable goose neck trailers (RGN’s). The largest difference between a double drop trailer and a removable goose neck is fairly simple. A double drop trailer requires the item being shipped be set onto it with something such as a crane. A removable goose neck trailer detaches from the actual hitch (goose neck) and allows items to be driven onto it. After the item is loaded and secured the semi-tractor backs up to the trailer and re-attaches the goose neck. While double drop trailers are common, recently removable goose neck trailers have been growing in popularity in the heavy haul trucking industry. This is due to the fact it’s so convenient and quick to load/unload provided the item being shipped is mobile.

Other types of heavy haul trailers.Heavy haul step deck trailer with extra axles.

Another heavy haul trailer is used widely in the industry with almost the flexibility as a removable goose neck. It’s called a step deck trailer. A step deck trailer is not as low to the ground as double drops or RGN’s but also popular in heavy haul trucking. Step deck trailers are manufactured with about as many axles you can afford. The more axles the more weight you can ship. One of the reasons a step deck trailer is popular is you can attach ramps to the rear end and drive machinery onto it. Then the actual “step” portion of the trailer is usually a 12 foot section. This is like a platform resting above the kingpin which attaches the trailer to the power unit.

Specialized heavy haul trailers.

Another trailer type used in heavy haul trucking is a steerable jeep trailer. Basically this type of trailer is used for transporting self supporting items that don’t require any deck space. A good example if a long i-beam. There’s no need to support it and perhaps it weights 100,000 pounds. With a steerable jeep trailer the front portion is attached to the power unit and the rear portion attached to a steerable unit on the rear. The front and the rear are not connected to each other with the exception of the item being transported. In the case of a shipment that is heavy but also long the jeep serves as a rear steer and can turn on a close radius making routing much simpler. There are many other types of heavy haul trailers used in heavy haul trucking. Here’s a common one we haven’t mentioned yet. The extendable double drop trailer. This is pretty easy to guess at. It’s a double drop trailer with multiple axles set up for heavy haul with the exception the trailer extends. Extendable double drop trailers basically have a i-beam down the center of them which can be locked into place. This type of trailer can literally have unlimited axles and extend up to 120 feet when fully stretched out. The only drawback to this type of trailer is heavy equipment must be lifted and not driven.

Need a heavy haul trucking quote?

If you wish to get a heavy haul quotation to transport your shipment the quickest way we know of is to post it to our loadboard. When you post your shipment many different specialized trucking companies specializing in heavy haul are immediately notified. If they have available heavy haul equipment for your ship dates they’ll contact you with a shipping quote. This saves you valuable time and resources so you can focus on what you do best. Leave the heavy lifting to us. If you require heavy haul quotes simply post your load to our loadboard today. You can also contact heavy haul trucking companies direct.

One of the benefits of using our heavy hauling network is it’s huge. It’s a cumulative effort of over 30 years in the industry and we encourage you to learn more about us. We serve every state and providence in North America as well as Mexico.

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