Benefits of Choosing Heavy Haul services

Heavy haul services are all about transporting oversized and overweight items. From military equipment to large-scale construction materials to large industrial machinery, traditional forms of transport are not sufficient, as transporting them is a challenging task—special attention in the form of handling, permits, and routing required for these types of shipments. So, before you try to transport large items, you need to get in touch with a heavy haul services provider. 


 When do you need a heavy haul freight?


Following the federal government, each state sets its regulations for heavy haul shipments. However, to classify oversized or overweight shipments, some general guidelines are widely followed.


A shipment needs heavy haul services if it exceeds a:


  • Width of 8.6 feet

  • Height of 13.6 feet

  • Length of 48 to 53 feet

  • Gross weight of 80,000 pounds


How can a heavy haul trucking company help you?


An excavators heavy hauling services provider can help you in the following ways:


  • Provides suitable equipment: While carrying heavy loads, insufficient heavy haul equipment can trigger an accident, and accidents lead to a whole host of woe-delays, bodily injury, cargo and equipment damage, and legal liability. A trucking company specialized in shipping overweight loads can reduce the risk for your shipment by using a chassis that handles the extra weight safely.  


  • Eliminates the need for overweight permits for certain loads: Some heavy haul truckers use light-weight chassis with wheels made of aluminum instead of steel. This makes the truck’s gross weight lesser while being perfectly capable of handling heavy haul loads. Some heavy haul carriers avoid big sleeper cabs and use trucks with day cabs, and some show up at your facility with just enough gas in the tank to get your container to the port. 


All these strategies help decrease the weight of the truck and let you fit more weight in the container while maintaining 80,000 lbs gross maximum.


  • Keeps your load legal: If the truck’s gross weight is more than 80,000 lbs., your trucker will keep you complacent with the law by obtaining a permit for each state your cargo crosses. If the cargo is oversize as well as overweight, the trucker will obtain the permits needed to cover them as well. 


  • Improves container loading to control the shipping costs: When the trucker has the right equipment for a heavy load and secures the required permits, you can load more cargo in the container. If you are shipping cartons of product weighing 440 lbs, each shipping line charges around $ 3,000 per container for the ocean shipment. 


A standard trucking company can ship 100 boxes on the ocean, for a total of 44,000 lbs, for $ 30 each, whereas a heavy haul trucking company might be able to ship 125 cartons in the same container, within a total of 55,000 lbs. This makes the cost on each carton $ 24 on the ocean. It means that you are shipping 25 cartons for free! 


So, heavy haul trucking can help you cut the number of containers it takes to ship your freight over a year, saving you thousands of dollars. 


  • Saves time: Local roads between your facility and the port might have weight restrictions that do not allow your cargo to cross over. A local heavy haul trucker with experience knows where these roads are and can map a route that avoids these roads to make the transportation hustle free without any diversions. 


Things to consider while choosing a heavy haul trucking company


There are many heavy haul trucking companies, and to choose the right one for you might be difficult. Some things you should consider to find top heavy haul trucking companies:


  • Safety: Before choosing a heavy haul trucking company, it is necessary to find out what their safety record is. You have to make sure that your load is safe to avoid losses. Also, they should have proper insurance coverage to protect your cargo in case any accident occurs.


  • Service: The behavior and attitudes of the staff tell everything about a company. A company that does not treat you well will probably not treat your cargo well either. Top-heavy haul trucking companies are courteous, professional, and therefore trustworthy. Also, check if they are providing same-day heavy haul service.


  • Transparency: The trucking company that you pick should always be willing to answer your questions. They should not hide information from you, and there should be a contact person who is easy to reach. If they are lying or reluctant to answer your questions, then they are not right for you.