Flatbed Training – Talking Points
Slide 1 - As always, take a moment to encourage the drivers to always practice Megasafe rules in the workday. Remind them about Megasafe 7 and Megasafe 5. Working in Flatbed Trucking adds another safety piece to the arsenal of safe practices. Getting home safe at the end of the day matters most.
Slide 2 - It is important to emphasize to the drivers that everything regarding safe practices is best if we follow a plan. In the training today, we have a plan. The plan has been designed to follow “your” day in flatbed activities. If you follow these steps every day, strive to continuously improve and stay focused, you will find that you are less prone to injury. Always remember our priorities at Ruan – Driver Safety, Safety of the Motoring Public, Protection of Ruan assets, and Protection of customer freight.
STRESS – to the drivers that it all begins with their safety, then proceed to the next slide.
Slide 3 - Play the Video First.
After the Video – Point out to the drivers that the video is only a snippet of the actual original video. If it had been allowed to play in its entirety, tell them that the injured driver comes back into camera view and collapses next to his truck. Warehouse employees find him and summon for emergency responders. The injuries sustained are significant and to witness it on camera does not tell the whole story. Ask the drivers about what they saw. Ask them about Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). Talk to them about Time Spent on Trailer. Talk to them about the statistics displayed on this slide. Talk about how dangerous it is to be a Truck driver and because of the added risk of Falls and Body Exertion, Flatbed Trucking can be even more dangerous than trucking van or reefer. Talk about what their understanding is of good safety practices.
STRESS - Remind them again, that their safety has to matter most. Nothing else good can happen if they are injured or killed while working.
STRESS – In 2014, a Ruan Flatbed driver fell off the trailer and died. In 2016, a driver tripped on a bungee cord and fell between the trailer and the raised dock and broke his ankle – required two surgeries and two pins. In 2016, a driver was using a winch bar improperly; it slipped and broke his face – 6 places.
Slide 4 - At Ruan, we are 100% compliant to all Federal, State and local laws regarding trucking and cargo securement. In the materials that will be presented today, you will find that more often than not, Ruan policy and guidelines far exceed regulations. It is important to know that regulations do exist and they do govern our activities, but they are not always best practice. They do not always advocate the best safety practices. We go beyond the minimums set by regulations. If the driver follows our guidelines, they will always exceed government minimums.
STRESS – the importance of Captain of the Ship - Drivers have to make the final call on whether or not cargo moves or doesn’t move, making that decision based on Regulations, Policy and Guidelines.
Slide 5 - Safety to the motoring public is the second principle we are striving to achieve. When cargo falls off the trailer because of improper cargo securement, everything around us is in danger. If cargo comes off the trailer and impacts our truck, then we too are in danger.
STRESS - These photos are actual Ruan trucks and our customers freight. Good cargo securement matters.
Slide 6 - Personal Protective Equipment is critical to personal safety. It is important to be seen while we physically work around the truck and trailer and to protect body parts that are most at risk of injury while trucking and flat-bedding – feet, hands, eyes, and head. It is for these reasons that Ruan has adopted an advanced level of safety guidelines that apply to all flatbed drivers. Discuss the 6 mandatory items on the slide. Reinforce through story, the hazards if not followed.
STRESS – Ruan has 6 required items but at times, our customers could require other items – hearing protection.
Slide 7 - Before we ever throw a chain or strap, we have to make a good load assessment. No different than performing a 360-4D Pre-trip. Point out common loading errors. Ask the drivers for examples. What have they experienced?
STRESS – During the discussion, look for some of these items – broken or damaged pallets, any loose items, broken bands, etc.
Slide 8 - Time on Trailer is critical to reduce injury and death to drivers. As a general rule, remember - the more time we spend on the deck, the more at risk we are to a fall. Remind the drivers about the statistics on Slide 3. Slips, Trips and Falls are a danger when we work from ground level in the trucking industry. The risk only goes up when we work 5 feet off the ground. Point out that the risk of Slips, Trips and Falls goes up even more because of the hazards that we place into our work environment, e.g. chains, straps, bungees, tarps, etc. All are objects that can cause us to fall.
STRESS – the importance of only walking into an environment that our eyes have surveyed first. NEVER walk backwards.
Slide 9 – Make sure drivers understand how best to secure their straps when not in use. We do not want them to be dangling from the side of the trailer.
Slide 10 - In this image, we can obviously see many different products, all within close proximity of each other. Discuss with the drivers all the implications that arise from loading issues similar to what is shown here. This load is entombed. Can securement be placed on all items? How would you secure this load? What are other actions we might have to take? (Asking the customer to reload is always a possibility).
Slide 11 - In this image, we again see several different products in close proximity. However, this load shows a nice “Valley” created when a center item is surrounded by other items to its edges that are taller. How do you secure the center item? Discuss with the drivers dunnage techniques and the Load Assistant Blocks. Also, reinforce the Captain of the Ship. If there is NO working solution, should the load go?
Slide 12 - What we are looking for in this slide is that the drivers assess that there are more than one layer of product. We CANNOT just go over the top with our securement. The drivers need to know that underlying layers should have securement on them too.
Slide 13 - Layering is mandated for certain products by federal regulations. However, it is always necessary to do when we have the ability to get a securement device through the freight. Discuss the usefulness of having a push/pull rod. Quick and simple ones can be made from a piece of rebar. Reinforce with the drivers that we can never create enough downward pressure by simply securing over the top. The center of the freight will still be prone to movement. We have to grab it in tiers to lock it in place.
Slide 14- At Ruan, we provide many different tools to perform the task. Discuss the importance of knowing the difference for each item. Discuss when they should be used and when they shouldn’t be used. As a guideline - L.A.B.’s are preferred over wood dunnage to fill in holes and valleys. Chains are stronger than straps. Ratchet binders offer a greater degree of safety and less strength needed to operate than a lever binder. Remind drivers, that most of our flatbed activities still have some 3/8 chains, however as these chains wear out, they will be replaced with 5/16 chains. Eventually, all business units will be using 5/16, with the exception of our Machinery accounts.
Slide 15 - This slide is the first one to present information that far exceeds Federal Regulations. Drivers will probably be inclined to challenge the information presented. Remind them that the Federal Regulations are only a minimum standard. Ruan’s guidelines exceed these minimums.
-The reason we use two straps on small objects, whereas the regulations state one is sufficient, is so that it cannot pivot while in motion.
-The reason we use 2 in the front and 2 in the rear and 1 every 10 feet in between, is so we create “Book Ends”. We want to pinch the ends shut, thus creating some load securement to the middle of the freight by allowing it to be squeezed. Fed Regs only require 1 in the last 10. Fed Regs also allow for the bulkhead to be used as securement so long as the freight is in contact. Ruan still requires 2 in the first 10 feet.
-The reason we secure to 100% of the load is for safety and product integrity. The Feds state 50% overall and 80% to the front. If we secure 100% of the overall freight we will always be in compliance, but we will also be in compliance should DOT place a securement device or two out of service on a road side inspection. You can never go wrong by having too much, but many things can go wrong if there isn’t enough.
-The reason Ruan adopted these specific load limits for securement devices are to keep the math simple. All of the weights adopted are beneath the DOT limits. We simply round down. This rule will make it easier and more time efficient for the drivers to ensure they are hitting the 100% mark.
The answer to the Question – 8 straps are needed to meet the 100% mark, using Ruan’s load limit restrictions.
Slide 16 - Straps and their placement is an issue all throughout the industry. The Fed’s repealed the requirement that straps go inside the rub rail in 2006. Now the law states, whenever practical. Ruan’s guidelines are similar. Straps should be inside the rub rail and secured to the frame of the trailer. The only time they should be outside the rail is if the rail is damaged or if the load is wide. Also, there are some trailers in the Ruan inventory that will not allow for strap placement to the frame. In this case, drivers will have to secure in some fashion to the rail if the only strap available is one with a flat hook.
STRESS – to report the damaged trailer during a post-trip so maintenance can fix it.
STRESS – the hook of the strap should not be hooked to the rail. It needs to be secured to the underside of the frame.
Slide 17 - Equipment inspection is critical. Wore out straps are not safe and often times are illegal. Look for wear and tear, missing tags and faded stamps. If these items are gone, the load limit of the strap is reduced to 1000 pounds per inch, e.g. a 4 inch faded strap only has 4000 pounds of securement. Discuss the strap in the picture. Does it look correct?
Slide 18 - Discuss the pictures in this slide. Reinforce that all 3 straps are out of services based on the guidelines posted above. Ask the drivers why are these straps on the load?
Slide 19 – This slide is a continuation from slide 18. It shows examples of what makes a strap OOS. Stress that a 20% abrasion cut (kiss cut) is the same as a ¾ inch cut. Also, the ¾ inch rule is the total amount of cutting. 3 - ¼ inch cuts over 15 feet of the strap still places it OOS.
Slide 20 - In this video we can see many safety concerns. Ask the drivers to identify some of them. Do they think there was damage to the strap before the driver started to tighten it down?
Slide 21 – Winch bar failure is one of the leading causes of injury around a flatbed trailer. Good weight displacement and positioning is critical to minimize injury if the bar breaks. Ask the drivers this simple question after working through all of the bullets. Why would it be necessary to place more than upper body strength (whole body weight, standing on, or jumping on) on the winch bar to tighten a strap? Remind them of the video they just watched and how the driver hung underneath the bar. Was it safe?
Slide 22 – This slide is a continuation from slide 21. Focus on the things that a driver should not do with the winch bar. Stress each bullet. Ask the drivers if they can think of anything else?
Slide 23 - Edge protection is not only regulated by the Fed’s but above and beyond, it is best practice. Straps can be cut by product and lead to securement failure while in motion. Product can be damaged by securement devices. Further, edge protection helps to hold securement devices in the proper location. As a rule, some type of edge protection should be used on any sensitive product (painted surfaces) and on any object with a potentially rough or squared edge. Edge protection can also be more than company and customer provided plastic. It can include carpet remnants, old cut up straps, old clothing, pieces of rubber, etc.
Slide 24 - Make sure to walk through each of the bullet points in this slide. Shoulder injuries for flatbed drivers are a severe issue in the industry. Point out some of the throwing concerns that also touch on Megasafe 5. Also, often times, our flatbed drivers are working near other flatbed drivers and many chains and straps are being tossed in the air at similar times. Situational awareness is critical to avoid injury from a flying chain.
Slide 25 - Drivers are probably going to point out that the working load limit for chains illustrated in this slide are not consistent with federal regulations or manufacturers. Let them know that they are correct. Ruan currently uses two main types of chains – 3/8 and 5/16, both grade 70. They have different Working Load Limits. Ruan has adopted a “Round it down” principle. Again, this has been done to keep the math simple and to ensure 100% load securement. Also, if drivers follow our guidelines, they will never be at or under DOT regulations. Point out that damaged chains should be treated just like damaged straps. Replace them.
Answer to the Question – 8 3/8th chains, when using 6,000 pound load limit securing to 100% of the product weight. 11 5/16th chains, when using 4,500 pound load limit securing to 100%.