Sizing A Dock Board By Capacity Width And Height Difference

Total The Whole Crossing Load

The board carries the fork truck, its load and the operator, all at once. A 5,000 lb counterbalance truck carrying a 3,000 lb pallet with a 200 lb operator puts 8,200 lb on the board, not 3,000 lb.

The S&L TAS series publishes three capacity classes: 10,000, 15,000 and 20,000 lb. Total the real load and then choose the class above it.

Length Sets The Approach Angle

The published height difference rises with board length: 5 inches at 36 inch length, 7 inches at 48 inches, 10 inches at 60 inches and 12 inches at 72 inches.

A longer board over the same step gives a shallower approach angle, which matters for low-clearance trucks and for any load that could shift on a ramp. Choose the longest board the bay geometry allows.

Width Is About The Truck, Not The Pallet

The series is published in 60 and 72 inch widths. The figure to check is the overall width of the widest truck that will cross, plus the margin needed for the operator to stay comfortably inside the safety curbs.

The steel safety curbs run the full length of both edges. They are steel rather than aluminium because the curb is the part a wheel actually contacts.

When To Choose Steel Instead

Weight is the case for aluminium. A 60 by 48 inch board in the 10,000 lb class is 145 lb, light enough for a dock team to move between bays.

Wear is the case for steel. Steel-wheeled pallet trucks, swarf, castings and hot or sharp material abrade an aluminium tread faster than a steel one. A steel board normally stays in one bay, so the specification question becomes which bay rather than which shift.

Measure The Bay You Will Actually Use

Measure the height difference at the bay in question, both with an empty trailer and a loaded one. A loaded trailer sits lower on its suspension, and the difference between the two is often several inches.

Size the board for the worst case of the two, then check both curbs and the tread surface before every shift.