Cranes and load cells at new trailer facility

Trail-Eze is a manufacturer of sliding axle, hydraulic tail, and detach trailers. The new site was established at its headquarters at Mitchell, which is one of three facilities operated by the company in South Dakota, alongside premises in Corsica and Platte.

The 41,000ft² was custom-designed for the final stages of trailer manufacture, to house the primary processes of blasting, painting, wood decking, and final inspections. The facility features two 7.5t-capacity cranes with 92ft spans, to cover most of the 100ft-wide, free span building, and one 15t double-hoist crane with a span of 60ft. The remote-controlled cranes are fitted with Stahl CraneSystems hoists, and were fabricated by Global Crane before being installed by Orion Rigging.

The loads lifted by the cranes are monitored by 13t-capacity Radiolink plus load cells manufactured by Straightpoint. The Radiolink plus is Straightpoint’s best-selling dynamometer, says the manufacturer, and is designed to be rigged with standard shackles from rigging specialist Crosby, which recently acquired UK-based Straightpoint.

Nate Tapio, operations manager at Trail-Eze, said: “Opening the new facility marks the culmination of years of research and development into the latest painting and finishing technology. The site allows us to consolidate the final stages of our production under one roof. The dynamometers are integral to a technologically-advanced operating environment; the software is easily customised to our needs, the products are user-friendly, and they save us time on every trailer.

“We actually discovered the Straightpoint solutions through our local lifting and rigging equipment supplier, Dakota Riggers. They knew we were seeking a method to generate an accurate weight of pieces and whole trailers we produce; this is important for our manufacturing processes and our customers.

“This is the first time we have utilised any of their products but we’ve been impressed. Previously our methods were inconsistent and time-consuming. Now, we can quickly and accurately get a weight on every trailer.”