September 6, 2023
Roll off trailer safety and uptime are key things that BENLEE is focused on:
Roll off trailer Safety or call 734-722-8100
Safety
Framed vs. Frameless
Roll off trailers manufactured by BENLEE are all fully framed trailers. A frame gives the trailer stability. Frameless among other things, when they lift the hoist, the wheel become closer to the king pin, reducing the distance so that there is even less stability. Also, on a frameless from at least one company the pivot point of the hoist is on the axle.
This means that the weight of the trailer and the load is heavily focused on the axle. On a framed trailer the weight of the box is on a major pin and the frame. Of course, the axles are at the back of the unit taking a lot of the weight, but the box pivot point is not on the axle.
Axles 102″ vs. 96″
All BENLEE trailers now have 102″ wide axles, vs. 96″. Moreover the wider ‘footprint’ helps distribute weight. Also, this becomes important in various cases, such as when a load shift when dumping or picking up a box, it could become less stable. Also, when a driver is going around a turn a bit too fast for the load, and or the load shifts, the wider axles help. Of course, when a trailer is on a soft surface (which is not smart in the first place) again, wider axles will help keep the trailer stable.
Hoist up “alarm” Strobe
After a horrific death in Michigan, the BENLEE team got together and added multiple system and components to make our trailers safer. Of course, roll off truks have been known for decades to have hoist up alarms, but trailers never did. The BENLEE team got together and developed the insurites first hosit up alarm. When the hoist is not in place a non contacting sensor, sense that the hoist is not in place. When that happens, it sends a signal to the strobe, that flashes forward, so the driver sees it in his rear view and side view mirror. A great new standard safety system on our trailers. Roll off safety strobe
Tail Out ‘alarm’ Strobe
An extendable tail has many advantages such as carrying more weight legally in a specific length trailer. Also, you can have higher and lower dump angles. Higher is great when you have a tough load you want to dump. Lower is great, when you are in a building, with a low ceiling. The issue though is, if the driver drives around with the tail out, that is dangerous. Since there is no swing bumper, that would mean if a driver hit the trailer from the rear, the tail could go through the windshield and kill the driver. Therefore, we have a sensor to sense if the tail pulled in. If it is not, the alarm/strobe blinks.
Tail Up ‘alarm’ Strobe
Most trailers have ICC certified/registered bumpers when the trailer has a fixed tail. This protects the driver from behind if he/she hits the trailer. When the trailer picks up or drops a box, the tail has to be raised/pulled in. Now, if something goes wrong and the tail is not back, locked in place, it is dangerous. Again, BENLEE has a sensor that if the tail is not in place, the strobe flashes and alerts the driver. A key to this is a a strobe, not a loud noise that disturbs the driver. Tail up sensor for your roll off.
Roll off straps
Roll off straps are one of the key components of a roll off trailer. The issue though is they come in various working load capacity. From what we know, almost everyone in the industry uses 20,000 lb. straps. For breaking strength you need to multiple that by .33, so 6,600 lbs. breaking strength. Not bad, so that if you have 4 straps, that is 26,400 lbs. At BENLEE we see safety is #1 and know bad things can happen or people do bad things. We literally take 2 (two) 24,000 lb, straps and sew them together, giving you 48,000 lbs. per strap, 15,840 breaking strength or 63,360 lbs, for 4 straps.
Hydraulic Control valve
All BENLEE competitors, other than one and for them only on one model, have their control valve sitting on the fender or a shelf in the front of the trailer. The controls are mounted to the valve. This means when a hose or a steel line fail that is on the valve the HOT oil under pressure will hit the driver. BENLEE mounts the valve inside a fold inside the king pin plate and uses straight control rods. This means the driver is a few feet away from the valve and hoses if there should be a failure. Also, BENLEE wraps the hoses at the valve in Kevlar sleeves to protect them.
Secondary air filter in the ABS
Of course brakes are one of the most inportant part of a trailer. BENLEE installs a secondary air filter in the ABS which gives the system an extra 100,000 mile warranty. This is just yet another exclusive feature of BENLEE.
Wheel Checks
Sadly, drivers and maintenance teams at times do not check lug nuts. It is key to safety but takes time and time is money. BENLEE has an answer though to checking lug nuts. Wheel Checks. The fit on each lug nut and point to the next one. They are all installed, so they all point to the next lug nut. If one lug nut comes loose, the green arrow will point in another direction, so visually with no checking with a wrench, you can see if the nut is loose.
Roll off trailers Wheel Checks
Tough Cover Abrasion resistant hydraulic hose
Roll off trailers are used in tough situations. That is why BENLEE uses heavy duty components. BENLEE uses 3,000 psi hoses, while most others use 2,000 lb.hoses. Moreover, we use “Tough Cover” abrasion resistant hoses, so that if something hits the hose (like scrap metal!), the hoses can put up with abuse. A failure in a hose with hot fluid can hurt an operator. Again a BENLEE exclusive. Hydraulics.
Dead Man Brake control
In the old days, roll off trailers had a toggle switch to control the brake. we still do for trailers over three axles. But for three and under, we have a Dead Man button. Moreover, this means that when the driver pulls up to the box, he no longer has to set the tractor and trailer brake, then get out set the trailer brake, then go back in the cab and unset the trailer brake. Also, going in and out of the cab is known to be a big issue for safety. With the Dead man button, on the trailer brake is set and then the operator uses he Dead Man button from there.
Greg Brown
greg.brown@benlee.com
734-722-8100