What is Liftgate Delivery?

Around 71% of all freight in the United States is moved by trucks. From these deliveries, there is a very high chance that there may be some destination that won’t have the equipment needed to facilitate a secure and safe offloading. Many who need liftgate service, now that they may need it but don’t know exactly what is liftgate delivery? So, they don’t know how or what to ask for when receiving quotes. 

A liftgate is a device on a truck that helps load and unload the freight. Liftgate delivery takes advantage of this device. This means a dock isn’t required for loading and offloading. Liftgate delivery makes moving freight easy, especially in the case of small business and residential shipments.

Usually when a package weighs more than 150lbs, offloading it can be tricky, especially if you have to rely on manpower alone. It leads to an increased risk of accidents and the shipment getting damaged. 

What is a Liftgate?

A liftgate is also known as a tail lift. It is a mechanical device that is installed on the back of freighters or trucks to help with the handling of goods with loading and unloading. It can either be used to load a freighter from ground level to the tricks bed or directly from the truck’s bed to the ground level. It’s something that is important to include if you do not have the necessary equipment for loading or loading in the destination you want your goods delivered to or from. 

Some useful features include:

• Uses pneumatic, hydraulic, or mechanical mechanisms to facilitate the operation. 
• An operator will normally use an electric relay switch to control the movement.
• It’s typically used where there is either no equipment or when the right equipment isn’t available for load/offloading cargo. 
• Can be used to facilitate loading on a raised platform dock, a liftgate serves as a bridge to aid the loading or offloading of goods.
• Most liftgates can lift up to 5000 pounds.

How does it work? The operation usually begins with the gate being in a folded position and tucked under the back of the truck. The operator will then lower it and unfold it so as to create a lifting platform (this is usually the driver). When offloading, the cargo is placed on the liftgate and then safely lowered to the level needed. When loading the liftgate can be adjusted to suit the height of the cargo. 

When Should You Use Liftgate Service?

Liftgate delivery is usually required when a facility doesn’t have the ability to offload the freight or lift the trailer height safely. 

Below are some of the times where you may require liftgate services: 

1. You don’t have access to a loading dock: Most of the facilities that don’t operate with the use of a shipping bay or loading dock will usually need to make use of a liftgate. They will lack the capacity to load a normal trailer. If the items weigh less than 150lbs there aren’t usually massive issues, however, anything above this or at the top end of this may need liftgate service. 
2. Construction sites: The majority of construction sites won’t have a loading bay or shipping dock and it’s unlikely they will build one just for deliveries. Liftgate service is highly beneficial for services like this as they tend to receive high levels or materials on a regular basis. To ensure a proper delivery a liftgate service will be needed. 
3. Residential delivery: Freight delivery isn’t only reserved for business to business. More than 100 million homes require frequent freight deliveries, the majority of homes aren’t equipped to unload items at the other end and therefore a liftgate service is essential. If you are going to be delivering to residential properties then you can almost guarantee you will need a liftgate. 

Benefits of Liftgate Delivery

There is certainly no denying that liftgate comes with a lot of benefits. Have a look below at a few: 

• Prevent injuries - One of the leading causes of onsite injuries is heavy lifting. Workplace injuries don’t just carry the risk of being sued but they also waste time. Using a good liftgate service will help to prevent unnecessary injuries from lifting items that are too heavy. Having a liftgate in place means that the temptation to overexert themselves is no longer there. 
• Prevent damages - If you look at the average height of a trailer bed, it’s not hard to see why damages occur if the stock falls from this height. The loss that comes with this could see you spending far more money than you need to. This is because damage leads to you need to embark on a further delivery and request another shipment, and request safe offloading. This can easily be minimized and prevented by using a liftgate service. It’s especially important if you are dealing with high-value stock. 
• Less manpower - Liftgate service means that less manpower is needed when a delivery arrives. This leads to less disruption in the workplace and leading to being able to organized delivery workers’ schedules to maximize productivity. Not needing to disturb staff from their job roles and being able to upload everything before processing the delivery means that there is less time standing around and more time being hands-on with processing the delivery. 

Book Liftgate Delivery with R+L Global Logistics

Delivering excellent liftgate services across the globe, R + L Global Logistics is on hand to offer you a variety of choices when it comes to your shipping needs, including how to understand What is Liftgate Delivery. We can guarantee that you will receive exceptional service with a highly trained driver to operate and a liftgate service to suit your requirements. 

Our full-service approach means that no job is too difficult or too much. We understand that itis not always possible to have the right equipment or manpower at a delivery point and therefore know how important it is to have a liftgate service available. 

Need additional services? You can count on R+L Global Logistics for white glove delivery service, hazmat carriers and much more.
If you want to know more about our liftgate service,  don’t hesitate to call us for a truckload shipping quote today at 866-353-7178.