Many things are essential for a trailer to be user-friendly and operational. Proper tie-downs, good decking, brakes, and axles are just a couple of examples. Drop deck ramps allow an operator to safely load equipment onto or off a trailer with ease and control. Felling Trailers continually strives to improve their product designs for strength and production efficiencies. Their engineering team reviews product design to find ways to enhance, refine and develop design improvements for increased operator safety and ease of use.
1500+ Drop Deck Ramps Built Annually
This was the case in 2018 when they revamped the I Series Drop Deck ramps. With over 1,500 sets of drop deck ramps made at Felling Trailers annually, making a change to our ramp design needed to have focus. The three main focus points in the drop deck ramp redesign were approach angle, strength, and initial traction.
Approach Angle
The improved approach angle of the drop deck ramps was achieved by adding a more robust plate to the bottom of the ramp. The engineered, lasered, and the formed piece is the first piece that touches the ground when loading your equipment. The angle, width, and construction of this piece are crucial for the safe loading of the equipment. Felling found the most common equipment loaded using this style of the ramp is a skid steer.
Stronger Design
The drop deck ramp’s strength came from simplifying the design of the ramp. Some trailer brands in the market offer an adjustable leg. Felling’s drop deck ramp is constructed with a nonadjustable formed leg that eliminates the possibility of operator error. The ramp legs are engineered for the deck height of each trailer they are mounted to. The newly designed approach plate also adds overall strength to the ramp redesign. With its larger footprint, the weight is distributed more evenly as equipment loads. Felling Trailer’s full-width ramp rod combined with narrow gap/offset gives a wide range of ramp positions.
Improved Traction
No matter what the approach angle is if you don’t have initial traction the ramp is unsafe. This was achieved by simplifying the design, which also increased production efficiencies. The ramp’s approach plate incorporates traction grab points. These grab points provide operators with a safer leading experience as the traction aid provides the needed grab point for their equipment’s tire or track. Thus, providing a more controlled manner to load or off-load equipment.
Contact Felling Trailers Today!
Learn more about the I Series Drop deck ramps and their many enhancements today! Contact us here, chat with us on our website, or give us a call at 1-800-245-2809.
