Why Heavy Haulage Is a Such a Specialised Area
Posted on: 11 January 2023
If you are in charge of operations at your organisation, you may be planning for the year ahead. You know that you have several sizeable loads to ship from one side of the country to the other and understand there is plenty of planning ahead. Yet, in this situation, would it be best to outsource this work to a skilled heavy haulage company instead? What do you need to know about their advanced planning capability and how they may be able to suggest some options you might not have thought of?
Master Planning
As you correctly identified, it does take a lot of planning whenever you have to ship loads that may be oversize, bulky, or have some other special characteristics. The best heavy haulage companies understand these challenges and know that restrictions could be associated with such a move. This is why they invest a lot of time in advance planning, which allows them to deal with last-minute problems, short-notice requests and other issues.
Load Optimisation
Ultimately, these planners are looking for the most efficient, reliable and affordable way to move a given load from its origin to its destination. As they plan, they will take into account various load configurations based on their previous experience and factors such as weight, dimension, centre of gravity and safety. In addition, they will make several plans, so they always have options. And they'll always take cost into account as while some roads may be more direct, the cost of using them may be much higher than an alternative.
Trailer Choice
These companies will also have access to a range of different trailer configurations. They will quickly know the best one for a particular job, taking into account elements such as loading, weight distribution and securing points. If any specialised rigging equipment is required, they'll have an option for that as well.
Man-Made and Natural Restrictions
Perhaps the most challenging part of a planner's job is to choose the route taken into account restrictions. For example, the local authority may ban loads of a certain size on specific roads or during certain times of day (known as curfews). However, even if those restrictions are not in place, a given road may not be suitable due to low bridges, tight roundabouts, or other elements. In addition, the biggest loads require an escort and even police in attendance. So, all of these factors need to be considered and dialled into the mix.
What You Should Do
As you can see, this is a very specialist area, and you should outsource it to the experts.
Contact a heavy haulage service to learn more.
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