Looks like i might be doing some work for a local company hauling steel…
Never really done much steel before, what i did do was limited to picking up pre-loaded trailers and taking them to another depot. Never had to load/unload the stuff…nor have i ever roped or sheeted in my 15 yrs.
Any tips, or general advice? I seem to remember that TATA had a hauliers video and handbook…i suppose i would be expecting too much to find the video online?
What sort of steel - sheets, coils, channels, flats ■■?
ROG:
What sort of steel - sheets, coils, channels, flats ■■?
By the sound of it…all of the above!
Take your time - all steel has the capacity to get loose if not driving smoothly
Harsh acceleration, braking or cornering is a no no
Steel should be secured with chains
I have done it all regards to steel
I used to do the occasional load of steel .well ok about 4in total 
Was from Cardiff docks to various stockholders .
We had pins we put up the side of the flat trailer . Was usually packs of box section with timbers between the layers . Was strapped down using plenty of straps . Then it had to be sheeted which was a pain as I had to learn that as I went along , as had no previous experience (or training )
There was a sheeting gantry with walkways either side with you pushed up against the sides of the trailer .
The guys who went in there with curtainsidesrs had it easy ! , mind you all the places I tipped at it was unloaded with an overhead crane .
Cheers mike
ROG:
Take your time - all steel has the capacity to get loose if not driving smoothlyHarsh acceleration, braking or cornering is a no no
Steel should be secured with chains
I have done it all regards to steel
Very sound advice ROG.I used to do a lot of steel yrs ago,always treat with respect especially bundles of oiled bars.
regards dave.
if your having anything to do with TATA be prepared to jump through all sorts of hoops, Inductions, load restraining guides that make no sense,loads must be chained this way, then next week they changed there mind and it must be chained another way,an identity card that proves you have been taught how to secure a load of steel,it goes on and on, i,m having a break from it and doing some curtain work for a few months, much more relaxing
a couple of the 8 or more card Tata/Norberts have issued me
I work on steel. We don’t use chains as a rule, only if we’re hauling structural/beams and that’s a rarity nowadays… We only use straps/ratchets as chains will damage the finished products…
I’ll see if I can get hold of the training stuff… Where in the country are you working out of ■■?
did steel for a bit a few mths ago, ratchets and straps even then the middle of the bundles would slide out just keep checking as i did when that happened, one of them rounds would make a nasty mess if hit anything, they were even steel strapped but the middles will slide
DonutUK:
Looks like i might be doing some work for a local company hauling steel…Never really done much steel before, what i did do was limited to picking up pre-loaded trailers and taking them to another depot. Never had to load/unload the stuff…nor have i ever roped or sheeted in my 15 yrs.
Any tips, or general advice? I seem to remember that TATA had a hauliers video and handbook…i suppose i would be expecting too much to find the video online?
Tell us what type of steel you’re carrying, will try and help.
Try and get some training when you start, it can go horribly wrong if loaded incorrectly.
Kate:
I work on steel. We don’t use chains as a rule, only if we’re hauling structural/beams and that’s a rarity nowadays… We only use straps/ratchets as chains will damage the finished products…I’ll see if I can get hold of the training stuff… Where in the country are you working out of ■■?
Will be based in West Midlands…
I think it will mainly be bars, coils and flat steel.
DonutUK:
Kate:
I work on steel. We don’t use chains as a rule, only if we’re hauling structural/beams and that’s a rarity nowadays… We only use straps/ratchets as chains will damage the finished products…I’ll see if I can get hold of the training stuff… Where in the country are you working out of ■■?
Will be based in West Midlands…
I think it will mainly be bars, coils and flat steel.
Do you wanna tell me who for ■■? That’ll help work out what stuff you’re likely to be carrying…
PM if you want… I work out of the midlands… I’ll help ya where I can…
DonutUK:
Kate:
I work on steel. We don’t use chains as a rule, only if we’re hauling structural/beams and that’s a rarity nowadays… We only use straps/ratchets as chains will damage the finished products…I’ll see if I can get hold of the training stuff… Where in the country are you working out of ■■?
Will be based in West Midlands…
I think it will mainly be bars, coils and flat steel.
Check out the Spanset web site. They do all the best bits & pieces although you will get what you pay for.
They have ■■■■ very heavy duty straps & ratchets for the sheet coils in the coil wells.
Just make sure the woods are in the right place if you’re hauling box sections & pipe as has been said, with harsh braking or accel, the little ones may want to come out of the pack forward or backwards. Heavy, short loads in the middle of your axles obv. Never put steel on steel without woods as it slides, particularly if its oiled.
Straps are usually rated at 5 tonnes a piece so if you’re carrying 30 tonnes then 6 straps as tight as you can get them or more if you’re paranoid.
The span set ergo ratchets are the pull down ones, larger than the normal ones & are very much worth the money as the normal ones are difficult to get tight unless you are a beast & sometimes the steel ain’t great on the cheap ones.
Strap to the chassis, not the side rave, I put the strap end on the chassis & have the ratchets on the side rave. Make sure your loose bits of strap don’t go under your wheels. make sure the ropes of your tarp don’t go under the wheels. There was a roping & sheeting thread on here recently, read it.
Put scrap tarp or carpet or whatever over any edges that will cut your tarp. Tarps are £500 each so gold basically. Carry duct tape to cover any cuts as if water gets in, you’ll have rust within the hour.
Get a dash cam as if you get cut up, you’ll paste them, via your rib cage. Just don’t put the footage up on here as the ■■■■■, holier than thou brigade will be out in force.
Silver_Surfer:
They have ■■■■ very heavy duty straps & ratchets for the sheet coils in the coil wells.
Straps for that = no way … Chains and tensioners a deffo
ROG:
Silver_Surfer:
They have ■■■■ very heavy duty straps & ratchets for the sheet coils in the coil wells.Straps for that = no way … Chains and tensioners a deffo
Rog… times change… Try going into a TATA site with chains on a coil and see how fast it gets rejected… Some places wont allow chains on coil…
Kate:
ROG:
Silver_Surfer:
They have ■■■■ very heavy duty straps & ratchets for the sheet coils in the coil wells.Straps for that = no way … Chains and tensioners a deffo
Rog… times change… Try going into a TATA site with chains on a coil and see how fast it gets rejected… Some places wont allow chains on coil…
That does not make sense
ROG:
Kate:
ROG:
Silver_Surfer:
They have ■■■■ very heavy duty straps & ratchets for the sheet coils in the coil wells.Straps for that = no way … Chains and tensioners a deffo
Rog… times change… Try going into a TATA site with chains on a coil and see how fast it gets rejected… Some places wont allow chains on coil…
That does not make sense
it might not make sense but they will not let you chain coils, we carry scrap pipes for TATA and we cant even chain those, at the moment its "normal " weather guidlines for restraining loads, wait until the “winter guidlines” come in a month or 2, it goes mental, the last load of strip coil i did out of wednesfield needed over 20 straps when 8-10 would have been suffice
Is it right that what we used to call “Dwangs” (type of chain tensioner) are now illegal.
I last used them in the 80s, on the steel job, we used to use a hollow pipe to tension them up, if you slipped or lost grip the pipe flew across the yard like a bloody rocket. Can,t imagine h&s allowing that nowadays somehow.
ROG:
Kate:
ROG:
Silver_Surfer:
They have ■■■■ very heavy duty straps & ratchets for the sheet coils in the coil wells.Straps for that = no way … Chains and tensioners a deffo
Rog… times change… Try going into a TATA site with chains on a coil and see how fast it gets rejected… Some places wont allow chains on coil…
That does not make sense
Look at the Spanset web site Rog, under load restraint & you’ll see the straps & ratchets they have are well up to & beyond what is needed to haul coil. They have straps for tanks too!
DonutUK:
Kate:
I work on steel. We don’t use chains as a rule, only if we’re hauling structural/beams and that’s a rarity nowadays… We only use straps/ratchets as chains will damage the finished products…I’ll see if I can get hold of the training stuff… Where in the country are you working out of ■■?
Will be based in West Midlands…
I think it will mainly be bars, coils and flat steel.
Check the Hingley trailers website, if its not them you’ll be working for you will see examples of strapping and trailers you may use. Tata steel have many rules (some of which are inane) so be prepared to have a suit tell you how to do it… this included one telling a group of drivers that they were not allowed on trailers (outside of the loading shed)to set timbers up for 45ft of rod coil. He suggested trying to use another timber snooker cue style to position the timbers down the centre of the trailer - didn’t suggest how to put the link pieces in underneath tho.