Neometrix / Ground Support & Load Handling Equipment / Heavy Vehicle Loading Ramp & Restraint Kit / NMX-HVL-32

NMX-HVL-32 · ENGINEERED-TO-ORDER CLASS — ADJUSTABLE RAMPS · BEARING PLATES · OWN RESTRAINT

Heavy Vehicle Loading Ramp & Restraint Kit. The transporter is hired. The kit has to bring its own strength.

Name: Heavy Vehicle Loading Ramp & Restraint Kit
SKU: NMX-HVL-32

A loading kit is used on a trailer it did not choose and on ground nobody has checked. The deck may be any height, its lashing points of unknown strength, and the ground under the ramp foot soft.

So the kit is designed to depend on none of it: ramps that span the gap, feet that spread their load into the ground, and restraint the kit carries itself.

Discuss a loading kit Capability note (PDF)

A heavy vehicle loading kit in place on an empty heavy-haul trailer: two long grey steel ramps with anti-skid surfaces and side rails rising from square steel bearing plates on the ground to the rear of the deck, with two stopper blocks on the deck, and no people

Fig · 01 — A heavy vehicle loading kit in place on a heavy-haul trailer: steel ramps on bearing plates leading up to the deck, with stoppers at the deck end — illustrative render.

The ramps

adjustableto the deck and to the vehicle's gauge

The ground

bearing platesspread the load into soft ground

The restraint

the kit's owncalculated, and independent of the trailer

The handling

hand-portableparts a small crew can carry and pin

Status

engineered to orderno unit yet delivered

ISO 9001ISO 14001EN 12195-1 lashing force referenceEN 12195-3 lashing chain referenceEN 12640 lashing point reference

Overview

Why the kit matters more than the trailer it is used on.

Because the trailer, its lashing points and the ground are all somebody else's, and the load is the kit's to hold.

Fig · 02 — The kit in one picture: ramps to span from the ground to the deck, stoppers to hold the vehicle in place, and restraint to secure it, with bearing plates behind the ramps and the kit's own anchor fittings behind the restraint.

The loading minute is the most dangerous minute of the journey, and it happens on borrowed equipment.

What the kit is actually for

It lets a heavy vehicle be driven on to, and secured on, a hired heavy-haul trailer in the field, without a loading dock or a crane: ramps to get it up, stoppers to stop it, and restraint to keep it there for the journey.

Why the ramps have to adjust

Hired trailers differ in deck height and width, and vehicles differ in gauge and ground clearance. So the ramps adjust in spacing and are chosen long enough to keep the angle gentle, because a low vehicle or one with a long overhang grounds at the crest of a steep ramp.

Why the ramp is a bridge, not a plank

The whole weight of the vehicle crosses a ramp on a small area, and the load is at its worst when the vehicle is half way up. So each ramp is designed as a stiff beam with an anti-skid running surface and guide edges that keep the vehicle centred.

Why the ground under the foot is part of the ramp

On soft or sandy ground a bare ramp foot sinks or slides, the angle steepens, and the ramp can shift under load. So the feet stand on bearing plates that spread the load, and levelling packs take up uneven ground.

Why the kit brings its own restraint

A hired trailer's lashing points are of unknown strength, and a chain is only as good as the point it pulls on. So the restraint is calculated from the load and fixed through the kit's own anchor fittings, not through points that nobody has tested.

Why the kit is built to be carried

There may be no crane and no forklift at the loading site. Every part is sized for a small crew to carry, pin and stow, in hot, dry and dusty conditions, and the joints are pinned rather than welded on site.

The sequence

Position, set, drive on, stop, secure, and check.

Six steps, and the two that make the load safe are the setting of the ramps on firm ground and the fitting of the restraint.

FIG · 02HEAVY VEHICLE LOADING RAMP & RESTRAINT KIT · POSITION / SET / DRIVE ON / STOP / SECURE / CHECK — THE KIT BRINGS ITS OWN STRENGTH

The length of the ramp matters as much as its strength. Shorten it and the belly of the vehicle meets the crest before its wheels reach the deck.

Fig · 03 — The same ramp foot on three grounds: firm ground where the foot holds, soft ground where a bare foot sinks and the ramp steepens, and soft ground where a bearing plate spreads the load — a drawing of the idea, with no values.

1 · Position

The trailer is parked on the firmest, most level ground available, with its brakes applied and its wheels chocked.

2 · Set

The ramps are placed on their bearing plates, spaced to the vehicle's gauge, and pinned to the deck fittings.

3 · Drive on

The vehicle is driven on slowly and straight, guided by a marshal standing well clear of its path.

4 · Stop

The vehicle is brought to rest against the stoppers, in the position the load calculation assumed.

5 · Secure

Chocks go in, then the chains and binders are fitted to the kit's anchor fittings and tightened, and the ramps are stowed.

6 · Check

The restraint is checked again after the first stretch of the journey and after every stop, because chains settle.

Work content

What the kit contains, element by element.

Read it as a checklist: a kit missing a row will buy that row back later, usually on the day a hired trailer turns out not to be what the loading plan assumed.

The fittings of a loading kit: the end of a steel ramp on a square bearing plate, a large connecting pin through lugs at the deck edge, and a steel lashing chain with a lever binder on an anchor fitting, and no people

Fig · 04 — The kit's fittings: a ramp end on its bearing plate, the pinned connection at the deck, and a lashing chain with its binder on an anchor fitting — illustrative render.

Element	What it does	What matters
Loading ramps	span from the ground to the trailer deck	stiff, with an anti-skid running surface and guide edges
Ramp spacing adjustment	sets the ramps to the vehicle's gauge	adjustable, and pinned so it cannot drift
Ramp-to-deck fittings	connect the top of each ramp to the deck	positive location, not friction alone
Bearing plates	spread each ramp foot's load into the ground	broad enough for soft or sandy ground
Levelling packs	take up uneven ground under the plates	quick to fit, without tools
Stoppers	stop the vehicle in position on the deck	a positive stop, not just friction
Chocks	hold the running gear against movement	fitted before any chain is tightened
Lashing chains & binders	restrain the vehicle to the trailer	sized by a load restraint calculation
Anchor fittings	give the restraint its own fixing points	independent of the trailer's own lashing points
Protective pads	protect the vehicle and chain contact points	no damage to the vehicle or the chain
Guides & markers	keep the vehicle centred on the ramps	visible in dust and in poor light
Carry cases & racks	stow and move the kit	every part portable by a small crew
Protective finish	resists sand, heat and corrosion	built for hot, dry and dusty ground
Load & proof testing	prove the ramps before handover	tested to a proof load, with records
Load charts & procedure	state what each part may carry, and how it is used	kept with the kit, in words a crew can follow

The element that decides whether the load stays put is not a fitting. It is the procedure. A kit is only as safe as the way it is used, so it ships with a written loading and securing procedure, and a check after the first stretch of the journey.

Fig · 05 — One kit, three interfaces: the ground interface, the trailer interface, and the carry and stow arrangements.

Full specification — expand

System	Loading ramps with an anti-skid running surface and guide edges; ramp spacing adjustment for the vehicle's gauge; ramp-to-deck fittings; bearing plates and levelling packs for the ramp feet; stoppers and chocks; lashing chains and binders sized by a load restraint calculation; the kit's own anchor fittings; protective pads and guide markers; carry cases and racks; a protective finish for hot, dry, dusty conditions; load and proof testing; and load charts and a written loading and securing procedure
The One Idea	The transporter is hired, so the kit has to bring its own strength and must not depend on the trailer's deck, its lashing points or the ground under the ramp
Why Adjustable	Hired trailers differ in deck height and width and vehicles differ in gauge and ground clearance, so the ramps adjust, and a longer ramp gives a gentler angle so that a vehicle with low clearance or a long overhang does not ground at the crest
Why a Bridge	The whole weight of the vehicle passes across a ramp on a small area, so the ramp is designed as a stiff beam with an anti-skid running surface and guide edges, not as a plank
Why the Ground	A ramp is only as strong as the ground under its foot, so on soft or sandy ground the feet stand on bearing plates that spread the load, with levelling packs for uneven ground
Why Its Own Restraint	A hired trailer's lashing points are of unknown strength, so the restraint is calculated from the load and fixed through the kit's own anchor fittings
Standards	EN 12195-1 for the calculation of lashing forces, EN 12195-3 for lashing chains, EN 12640 for lashing points on commercial vehicles, and ISO 9001 are the public references this class is designed against. Acceptance of the finished kit rests with the customer and their inspection authority
Configurations	A ramp set, a loading and restraint kit, and a complete field kit with bearing plates and carry cases
Scope Boundary	This is the field kit used with hired trailers. It is not a trailer or a transporter, not a crane or a hoist, and not a machine that loads stores over a tailboard (see mobile battery-operated chain conveyor)
Status	Neometrix engineers heavy vehicle loading ramp and restraint kits to order, and no delivered heavy vehicle loading kit is claimed.

Configurations

One principle, three ways to supply the kit.

The ramp geometry, the ground interface and the restraint calculation are shared. What changes is how much of the loading job is inside the kit.

Ramp set

Ramps and stoppers

Adjustable ramps with their deck fittings and stoppers, for users who already hold suitable restraint equipment.

Loading & restraint kit

Getting on, and staying on

The ramp set together with chocks, lashing chains, binders and the kit's own anchor fittings, sized by the load restraint calculation.

Complete field kit

For soft ground and remote sites

The loading and restraint kit with bearing plates, levelling packs, protective pads and carry cases, so that it works without support.

Fig · 06 — Three ways to supply the kit, one principle: a ramp set, a loading and restraint kit, or a complete field kit.

And the part that is not a fitting at all, yet decides all three: the load chart — the plain statement of what each ramp, chain and plate may carry, and in which arrangement. It is kept with the kit and written for the crew that will use it.

Where it is used

Wherever a heavy vehicle has to be loaded without a dock or a crane.

The common thread is a loading site that offers nothing: no platform, no lifting equipment, and no say in which trailer arrives.

Sites without a dock or crane

Where the ramps are the only way on, and the kit has to be set up from a standing start.

Hired & mixed trailers

Where the trailer changes from one move to the next, and the kit must fit whichever one turns up.

Long-distance relocation

Where a vehicle is carried a long way by road and the restraint has to survive the whole journey.

Soft, sandy or uneven ground

Where the ground under the ramp foot is the weakest part of the arrangement, and the plates and packs earn their place.

FAQ

Common questions.

Longer answers, for readers who want the reasoning.

Q · 01 Why not use the ramps that come with the hired trailer?

Because a hired trailer may arrive with no ramps, with ramps built for a different vehicle, or with ramps whose condition nobody knows. A trailer is normally hired for its deck and its wheels, not for the loading equipment that happens to be on it. A ramp designed for a lighter vehicle, or for a narrower gauge, is a hazard the moment a heavy vehicle drives on to it. The kit removes that guesswork: it is designed for the vehicle it will carry, it adjusts to the deck it will meet, and it has been proof-loaded before it leaves the works. It also means the loading plan does not change every time the trailer does. The alternative is to trust each hired trailer's equipment afresh on every move, which is exactly the kind of assumption that fails on the day.

Q · 02 How steep can the ramp be?

As gentle as the site allows, and never steeper than the vehicle can take. The angle of a ramp follows from its length and the height of the deck: for the same deck, a longer ramp is a gentler ramp. The vehicle sets the limit. A vehicle with low ground clearance, or a long overhang at the front or rear, can ground its underside at the crest where the ramp meets the deck, even before its wheels reach the deck, and a steep ramp can also cost the vehicle its grip. So the ramp length is chosen from the vehicle and the deck together, not from the strength of the steel alone. This page states no angle or length, because both depend on the vehicle and the trailer, and they are settled at design review against the customer's own loading plan.

Q · 03 Why does the ground under the ramp matter so much?

Because the ramp foot is where the whole load meets the ground, and a small area carrying a large load presses hard. On firm ground that is fine. On soft or sandy ground a bare foot can sink, and when it does the ramp steepens, its top can lift away from the deck, and the whole arrangement can slide. A heavy vehicle in the middle of such a ramp has nowhere to go. The remedy is simple and old: spread the load. Broad bearing plates under each foot carry it over a larger area, and levelling packs take up the unevenness so that the ramp sits flat and true. It follows that a ramp is only as strong as the ground under its foot, however strong the ramp itself. The kit therefore treats the ground interface as part of the ramp, not as an afterthought.

Q · 04 How is the vehicle held on the trailer once it is on?

By stoppers, chocks and chain lashings, sized by a calculation and fixed to points that have been proven. The public method for the calculation is set out in EN 12195-1: it works from the mass of the load, the friction between the load and the deck, and the geometry of the lashings, and it considers forces in every direction, not only backwards under braking. Heavy vehicles are usually secured by direct lashing with chains and binders, and chain lashings are covered by EN 12195-3. A chain, however, is only as good as the point it pulls on. EN 12640 sets minimum requirements for lashing points on commercial vehicles, but a hired trailer may not have points that meet it, or that were ever tested for this load. So the kit brings its own anchor fittings, and how they are fixed to a strong part of the trailer is settled with the customer and the trailer type at design review.

Q · 05 Is this a trailer or a transporter, or a machine for loading stores?

No. It is the kit used with a trailer that somebody else owns and provides. Neometrix does not offer a trailer or a transporter here, and this is not a crane, a hoist or a lifting frame. It is also not a machine for loading stores: the mobile battery-operated chain conveyor page describes a powered conveyor that carries stores over a tailboard or into a wagon, which is a different job. This page describes the ramps, stoppers and restraint that let a heavy vehicle drive itself on to a trailer and stay there. The two can be used side by side at the same site, and neither replaces the other.

Q · 06 Has Neometrix built one of these?

We would rather answer this plainly than let a page imply otherwise. Neometrix engineers heavy vehicle loading ramp and restraint kits to order, and no delivered heavy vehicle loading kit is claimed. What stands behind the offer is adjacent: a kit of this kind is mostly heavy steel fabrication, pinned and welded structures, proof loading and field-deployable equipment, and Neometrix engineers handling equipment and vehicle-mounted systems of that character (see the mobile battery-operated chain conveyor and tactical water bowser pages). The lashing chains, binders and similar restraint hardware are proven catalogue items and are chosen with the customer, not invented. So the honest position is this: the kit is engineered to order, the neighbouring disciplines are in the building, and the first kit of this exact type will be built around a customer's vehicles and trailers rather than lifted off a shelf.

Q · 07 Which standards apply, and who decides how much a kit must carry?

EN 12195-1 is the public reference for calculating lashing forces, EN 12195-3 is the public reference for lashing chains, and EN 12640 is the public reference for lashing points on commercial vehicles. None of them, on its own, sets how much a particular ramp must carry or how many chains a particular vehicle needs: those come from the mass and dimensions of the vehicle and from the customer's own loading and transport procedure, and they are not printed generically on a page like this one. Acceptance of the finished kit, including the proof-load tests before handover, rests with the customer and whatever inspection authority they name.

Q · 08 What do you need from us to quote?

Six things, and most of them describe the vehicles and the loading site rather than the kit. First, the vehicles: their mass, the gauge of their running gear, their ground clearance and their front and rear overhang. Second, the trailers: the range of deck heights and widths, and what lashing points they have, if that is known. Third, the ground: the usual conditions at the loading site, whether firm, sandy or sloping. Fourth, the loading method: whether the vehicle drives on under its own power or is winched, and how large the crew is. Fifth, the configuration: a ramp set, a loading and restraint kit or a complete field kit, and how many kits. Sixth, the environment: the heat, dust and storage conditions the kit itself must survive. From that we come back with a system definition you can check, a layout drawing, and a budgetary price.

The other field handling and vehicle systems, and how they differ from this one.

Three neighbours in the same field-logistics family.

↗ Loading stores by machine

Mobile Battery-Operated Chain Conveyor

A mobile conveyor that takes stores over a truck tailboard or into a wagon - a powered machine, not a ramp.

↗ A heavy load on a vehicle

Tactical Water Bowser & Distribution System

A vehicle-mounted fluid system, where the behaviour of a heavy moving load is the design driver.

↗ The container that gets moved

Mobile Environmental Storage Container

A storage container that keeps a stored article protected for years, and is itself lashed and moved.

Browse all Neometrix product lines.

Get a quotation

Tell us the vehicles, the trailers,
and what the ground is like.

The projects desk replies within two working days with a system definition you can check, a layout drawing, and a budgetary quotation. Write to [email protected] or use the form.

Enquire — loading kit Capability sheet (PDF) +91 7777 876 876

ISO 9001 / 14001 ENGINEERED-TO-ORDER CLASS — HEAVY VEHICLE LOADING RAMP & RESTRAINT KIT POSITION · SET · DRIVE ON · STOP · SECURE · CHECK — THE KIT BRINGS ITS OWN STRENGTH ENGINEERED IN NOIDA · INDIA