The Load Tech load monitor, which is mounted in the cab or on the outside of the vehicle, makes compliance easy as it enables the truck driver to monitor in real time what mass is being loaded onto the vehicle.

As the war on overloading intensifies, transport operators need to find better ways of ensuring their loads comply with mass restrictions without jeopardizing their payload efficiency. One way to do this is to use onboard weighing systems which bring enhanced levels of accuracy and efficiency to the loading procedure. 

According to John Harrison of Loadtech, suppliers of on-board weighing technologies, “the pending new penalty demerit system pushes one to ask if it will be possible for truck hauliers to make a profit and stay out of jail. Luckily, the problem is relatively easily solved for most transporters.” 

Back to basics

Transporters firstly need to familiarise themselves with the overloading laws and how they affect the trucks that they have, advises Harrison. “It is amazing how many transporters do not have detailed information of both the legal limits and the actual tare weights of their trucks. The tare (unladen) weight of the truck should be obtained by weighing it empty with a full tank of diesel and the driver in the cab. The design maximum loads can be obtained from the truck supplier, trailer builder or local traffic weighbridge. The difference between the two weights is the maximum that can be loaded.” 

Once the limits have been determined, the drivers need instruction on the maximum legal payloads and the legal limits. “Written instructions in the truck are best,” Harrison continues. “They need to take responsibility for the correct loads and must have the ability to question loads that they suspect are too large. This training and documentation should also be extended to the personnel responsible for the loading operation.” 

New constraints

New laws aimed at including the consignor and consignee in an overloading offence along with the driver and transport contractor will make it imperative for every loading site to have some kind of system to screen the weight of all trucks leaving the loading point, says Harrison. 

“Not all sites have a weighbridge and most of the weighbridges cannot measure axle loads. New software added to the old weighbridges offers a dynamic estimate of the axle weights that will suffice for a truck that is loaded to the legal limit. Trucks loaded over the limit but within the 2 percent allowance are still likely to have individual axles overloaded. In reality any consignor, consignee or contractor yard should have an axle group scale at the gate to check each truck before it leaves,” he says. 

“Most privately-owned weighbridges are single deck design and cannot give accurate axle group weights. To help prevent time lost in reloading and ensure profitable and legal loads, transporters need to control the weight at the loading zone,” states Harrison. “Many contractors have experienced the frustration of arriving at the consignor’s weighbridge only to be told that they are overloaded and have to return to the loading queue. Solutions here range from accurate flow meters fitted on liquid dispensing systems, automatic preweighed loading bins and weighing systems fitted to wheeled loading machines.” 

Specialised help 

Planning, attention to loading processes and fixed systems will solve most transport problems, Harrison believes. “For contractors who don’t have these basic systems in place, the solution in most cases is to fit an on-board weighing system. Loadtech On Board weighing systems are permanently mounted on the truck and travel with the truck. They provide in-cab indication of both axle group and total loads and have a print facility for management control.” 

The beauty of on-board weighing technology is that it brings accuracy to the loading process in any situation/application. “Loads can be moved to rectify load distribution and totals can be adjusted to get the maximum load. The fact that product can be loaded correctly the first time will prevent weighbridge rejections and hefty fines while helping to improve turnaround times and fuel consumption,” concludes Harrison.