Doleco USA, a manufacturer of lifting, sling and load-securing technologies, unveiled its new ConnectedDeck System which merges two or three adjustable, self-leveling decking beams with a formed composite panel that creates an integrated cargo platform. According to the company, this platform is easily adjustable, stores at ceiling height and never has to be disassembled and reassembled. The product announcement was presented to the industry during a press conference at the Technology Maintenance Council (TMC) 2023 Annual Meeting.
According to the release, Doleco’s new ConnectedDeck System is based on the design of its award-winning Level Deck Self-Leveling Decking Beam and LayerLok XP Track. Fitted with its lightweight, composite decking platform, the ConnectedDeck design enables workers to swiftly and effortlessly deploy and adjust an entirely decked, ready-to-load, two- or three-beamed cargo platform within seconds, the company noted.
Locked at ceiling height when not in use, the whole unitized platform can be released with a common dock hook or fifth-wheel pin puller. No system-specific tool is needed, eliminating the problem of missing or misplaced beam release tools. After just one side of the ConnectedDeck is unlocked with a single pull, the entire spring-assisted, self-leveling platform is freed and can easily be manipulated by hand, moved to its desired height and locked into position.
By consolidating three lightweight spring-assisted beams with an engineered composite panel, an unloaded ConnectedDeck can be positioned by hand in 13 seconds, according to the company. Additionally, the entire unit requires less than 10 pounds of force to pull down and can lift itself, unassisted, back to its ceiling storage position.
According to Doleco, other captive decking systems that rely exclusively on rivets to secure vertical tracks to trailer walls begin with an inherent weakness. The regular up-and-down movement of beams, the mechanical action of trailers in motion and even minor encounters with a forklift will cause rivet holes to deform, tracks to misalign and often to detach from trailer walls, causing beams to chafe or completely jam.
Doleco’s LayerLok XP can be installed with structural-grade adhesives. Used widely in trailer body construction, among other heavy-duty industries, and for track applications in Europe for more than 15 years, these advanced adhesives provide Doleco’s tracks with three times the strength of riveted tracks, without penetrating and compromising trailer walls, as noted by the company.
