A Beginner's Guide to Buying a Dock Leveler

Dock levelers are one of the best inventions the warehouse industry has ever come up with. Today, an efficient warehouse can't function without a dock leveler. It helps to load and unload product on trucks and provides a safe, ergonomic working environment for employees.

Let's begin by introducing it briefly before going deeper into its efficiency.

What Is A Dock Leveler?

A dock leveler is a kind of metal plate permanently fixed at the port door in the warehouse. The metal plate is called a lip, and it's set at the storage area, where we load or unload product. To make transportation of loads easy, it lands directly on the truck's trailer  floor. There are various dock levelers available, including those that are expandable or fastened. A second noteworthy feature is that it can be customized to function either manually or at a push of a button. 

Choosing The Right Dock Leveler

Several factors come into play when choosing the right dock leveler. One must look at the building itself and decide if it will be pit mounted or wall mounted. Pit mounted dock leveler would be placed in a concrete pit while a wall mounted dock leveler (Edge-O-Dock) is attached directly to the wall of the dock. Choosing between these two types will narrow your options immediately. Next, you need to check the dimensions of the loading dock to make sure the width matches. A dock leveler that doesn't  fit your loading dock certainly would not help you too much. The next factor you will need to consider is the capacity that will be required. If you know that there will be heavy products coming on and off all day, you must make sure the capacity is sufficient. Lastly, you will want to choose between a powered or mechanical dock leveler.

Proper Employee Training

When you buy any instrument, you have to keep it and need the proper training to use it. The same is the case with dock levelers, and all employees should be trained in a professional way to provide them with maximum safety. To neglect the proper training of workers, you will have to face severe consequences. If you follow all the steps, your dock leveler will perform much better

Final Thoughts

We tried to help you buy a dock leveler that will fit perfectly in your warehouse. You'll get to know the easy, safe, and perfect way to use a dock leveler if you follow all the steps above.