[what's new in:]Cargo securement

While it's inaccurate to say that carriers dealing with cargo in the past just “tied it on and hoped for the best,” the new focus on cargo securement by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) program has put renewed focus on loads. Under CSA, detailed inspections lurk at every turn, and the slightest misstep can bring unwanted attention to your fleet. Here's some of the latest information for your fleet about what's become a very hot topic.

“Today's fleets are continually striving to achieve a better return on their investment in capital equipment and people resources,” says Ralph Abato, vice president of sales & marketing for Ancra International. “Fleets want to get more out of their trailers and more out of their people.

“Undoubtedly, our most successful offering to the market has been our Lift-A-Deck II Load Maximizing System, a double deck system for trailers that maximizes usable cube and greatly increases revenue per mile,” Abato says. “With over 50,000 units sold so far, this has become a major means for fleets to address safety, damage prevention savings and efficiencies.”

Ancra also offers the Ergo 360 Winch Bar. Developed by a trucker, this simpler, more versatile bar helps eliminate injury while improving productivity. “This bar eliminates the rotational slipping that sometimes occurs when tightening down a load and is setting the standard for winch bars in the industry,” Abato says.

To meet demands for stronger, longer-lasting straps, the company developed the X-Treme. “Fleets have indicated a willingness to pay a small premium for a much better value strap and the X-Treme was born,” Abato says. “With twice the abrasion resistance of ordinary webbing, it holds up better, resists moisture absorption and keeps fleets in CSA compliance with straps that remain in good condition longer.”

TRACKING SAFETY

Kinedyne Corp. rolled out several new products this year at the Mid-America Trucking Show. Among the items displayed was a new L-track solution for its Kaptive beam systems and components, and Steadymate recreational vehicle tie-downs and hardware.

The Kaptive line of decking tracks and beams now includes the L-track, joining the A, E and F tracks, which are available in standard 10-ft. lengths. Kinedyne also introduced new accessories for the line, including logistics straps and hardware compatible with the system's tracks. Drivers can easily raise and lower the beams, which are stored at ceiling level when not in use.

The Steadymate high-quality line of tie-downs is designed to meet the needs of customers who own and transport recreational vehicles. This four-season line of tie-down and securement point hardware was previously available only in Canada.

“The effort we put into several major initiatives during the past few years, including reorganizing our sales and operations team, is already paying dividends in the form of positive sales growth,” says Larry Harrison, vice president of sales and marketing. “In addition, the new global computer system we launched last year will further enhance our already world-class service. I'm excited about the future and confident Kinedyne is now positioned to accomplish great things.”

ON THE FARM

With farming equipment prices that stun even those used to the sticker shock of buying new trucks, agricultural customers have to get extreme value from every bit of non-human resource at their disposal.

One of the new offerings from Roll-Rite is an electric-powered conversion kit that upgrades the manually cranked roll tarp that generally comes with a new grain trailer. The system features Rite Touch, a wireless remote control that comes with each conversion kit. The driver can operate the tarp from anywhere within 100 ft., including from inside the cab, without the need to wire a switch into the tractor's electrical system, according to Jim Kenyon, vice president-sales & marketing.

In addition to the conversion kit, Roll-Rite offers the Rite Trap hopper door kit that opens and closes trap doors on grain trailers, also using a wireless remote control that shuts off automatically when the door is at either a fully opened or closed position. “When combined, these two systems can save several minutes on each load, improving efficiency and productivity,” Kenyon says.

Roll-Rite also offers several products for scrap and waste haulers that Kenyon says are lighter than competitors' products while maintaining strength and durability.

“The all-new DC350 super slider is an automatic tarping system for roll-off and hooklift trucks,” explains Kenyon. “The super slider weighs approximately 600 lbs. less than competitive products. To improve efficiency, Roll-Rite fully assembles the tower of all of our DC line of products, cutting installation time by several hours [and] saving hundreds of dollars.”

Earlier this year, Aero Industries, national distributor of the Quadrant line of dump liners, announced that the QuickSilver dump liner will come with a lifetime warranty. The company is also offering the Durapro dump liner with multiple warranty options. Any half-gauge or thicker QuickSilver line includes the lifetime warranty, guaranteed for any temperature asphalt. The Durapro includes three different warranty options. For ¼-in. liners, a one-year warranty is available; ⅜-in. liners come with a three-year warranty; and ½-in. liners include a five-year warranty.

Last year, Shur-Co introduced a new aluminum flip tarp system that it said offers simple, easy installation and convenient protection of loads for dump bodies, belly dumps and end dump trailers up to 38 ft. long.

The Arm-Matic system includes a one-piece extruded arm and is available to fit nearly every box style on the market, Shur-Co. said. Several spring configurations are available, including four-spring and five-spring side mount designs and three different underbody spring configurations.