Of course, before being in the material handling business, I could understand how this piece of equipment gets overlooked. It doesn't bring in any money, it isn't a machine (most of the time) and if you can put a shim here, or file it down there, the dock board/leveler still works. But as with all things that wear, a small problem usually becomes a big problem and it can cost the company a lot of money. There are plenty of important parts of socks and doors and sometimes your best investment comes in small packages and maintenance.
The bumpers alone are such a crucial part of the dock leveling systems. When a bumper is missing or worn, a truck has the high potential of hitting the dock opening and causing many problems. The truck restraints won't engage, the levelers can get damaged and the walls could get worn as well. I just went to see a client who wanted some dock levelers. Because of damaged and missing bumpers, we have to do so many repairs account for almost half of the cost of the bumper and leveler replacement! Not to mention the repairs we don't do, like the damage the trucks have done to their tin walls, allowing rodents to come in. All for a couple hundred dollars in bumpers!
Another thing I see companies over look is simple maintenance. We look for a lot when doing SMs on dock levelers is the overall condition of the unit. We want to be sure it is safe to operate, make sure there aren't any broken hinges, stress cracks, things of that nature. Then we will operate the dock to make sure its in balance. Mechanical dock levelers have a lot of moving parts - under the dock there are 4-8 springs that raise the docks, counter balance assembly and other springs to kick the lip out. You don't want the dock lifting too fast or two slow ( which has to do with spring tensions). This is for the safety of your operators. We will also sweep out pit. What is does to ensure there are not any harboring points. This is especially crucial for food or controlled environment. who are trying to avoid a spot for rodents to feast on pallet pieces or food. We also check bumpers, which I explained the importance of those a little earlier!
When clients don't do routine checks on their docks, they miss potential issues when they are small, and then they become large problems. An example is stress cracks. These can be identified and it is a simple weld if caught early. If left, a year or two later, these stress cracks can be structural failures and now I see my clients replacing docks, and that could have been avoided. We want to replace bumpers before they are a potential issue. Bumpers should be replaced a pair here, a pair there, but we see whole bumpers replacing at once because of not doing SMs. Its like going to the dentist. If you go every 6 months, they can catch a potential decay or cavity early. If you wait 5-10 years, the next thing you know you have 3 root canals, 7 cavities and a bridge, causing a lot of pain and a whole bunch of money.
The safety of your employees, the cleanliness of your facility, and the forever need to fulfill your wallet can drive you to manager your docks. You want properly working levelers or dock boards for your employees safety. You want to keep the rodents out for the cleanliness of your facility, and scheduled maintenance will catch potential issues before they become huge problems. Thus, saving you money in the long run. If you only take two things away from this blog, please remember this: Take care of your docks, and go to the dentist.
