Episode 63: Christmas special – Keep your eyes open in traffic

This time I would like to show you a few situations that anyone with a keen eye and the right vision could also see in road traffic.

By keen eye, I mean the ability to see things/situations without actually looking for them. Anyone who has acquired this ability will hopefully also use it in their own company. There are only advantages!

Beispiel 1:

Unfortunately, I was unable to get a better picture. The chains used to secure the load are used with different methods.

Securing to the rear with the chain corresponds to head flashing. This is OK so far. Securing to the front with two chains corresponds to the tie-down lashing method. This can be seen from the angles. In the event of emergency braking, the concrete part could move forwards until the chains become taut. The end wall made of wooden beams, supported by the stanchions, will hopefully prevent this movement.

It would have been more effective to attach the four hooks of the chains about 1 m further back. This would have turned the force-fit tie-down lashing into a form-fit bay lashing.

Beispiel 2:

This load consists of plastic barrier elements and is therefore certainly not heavy. The straps are attached to the frame of the dropside, which is not designed for this purpose.

It is presumably a bulk goods body that has no lashing points on the loading area. Regardless of whether the load is adequately secured or not, the vehicle is not suitable for transporting general cargo.

Beispiel 3:

Anyone who is involved in loading containers, among other things, will certainly know that the seal would have to be attached rotated by 180 degrees.

This situation gives the viewer the impression that the people involved do not know exactly how to do this. The inspectors at the port also notice this and think, well, let’s take a look.

Beispiel 4:

If you mentally connect the upper edge of the wheels and the wheel arches with a line, you will notice that they are not parallel. That somehow looks like overloading.

Overloading has an effect on steering and braking ability, i.e. operational safety. This is the responsibility of the driver in accordance with §23 StVO Duties of the driver.

Beispiel 5:

The hydraulic hammer for an excavator is definitely heavy. It is secured by force-fit tie-down lashing, which is an unfavorable method in principle. The braking deceleration of a car is assumed to be 0.9g, that of a truck only 0.8g.

What would happen if the driver had to brake? It’s hard to imagine. In the worst case scenario, the driver has the hydraulic hammer in the trunk of his car.

Beispiel 6:

The opposite of good is well-intentioned. This is the impression conveyed by this situation. The rear belt secures the load against flying away, but not against slipping during a forced evasive movement of 0.5 g to the left or right. The front belt runs so flat over the load that it does not generate any significant securing force.

The load would be secured if anti-slip mats were used. However, these are not visible due to the viewing angle. The overall impression rather suggests no.

Beispiel 7:

Heavy precast concrete parts. The individual loading units are secured in an exemplary manner by head lashing. Edge gliders are used at the deflections. The people involved know what to do here. This is how it should be.

Beispiel 8:

Very nice, everything well secured. That’s how it should be.

Even though, as a pensioner, I’m no longer sitting in the front row, I can’t let go of the subject. As a driver, however, I could be affected at any time. This should give the readers of my articles cause for concern and prompt them to look for improvements in their own company.

With this in mind, I wish all readers a peaceful Christmas and a good start to the New Year. Then we’ll continue with the next episode, because the topic is almost inexhaustible.
Tackle it, it can only get better!

Yours, Sigurd Ehringer