Dock houses – complete pods consisting of a dock leveller and dock shelter in one – can be used to maximise warehouse space, providing an additional area between the warehouse and the vehicles being loaded and unloaded. Situated on the outside of the warehouse walls, they allow the use of internal space to be maximised. It’s also possible to build dock houses that can be moved around, creating ‘portable’ loading docks which can greatly improve flexibility in the operation. In short, they can be invaluable additions to warehouses or distribution centres.

If properly designed, dock houses can be relatively light in structure whilst still being strong enough to cope with heavy loads. 

Dock houses are generally manufactured from insulation panel with a minimum 40mm thickness (80mm is optional). They can, however, be covered in single-skin cladding for ambient buildings. Insulation panels are self-supporting and are extremely strong when fixed in position with deep ‘U’ channels. Roofs are usually made from a deep corrugated section, which is flashed and fitted with downpipes to take rain water down to the service yard level.

The dock shelter or dock pad fixing is organised within the structure and this is generally taken care of by galvanised folded sections fabricated into a frame. The door can be housed at the building line creating maximum insulation of the main warehouse when the door is closed. Alternatively, it can be housed within the dock house – either at the front or rear. However, it’s important to remember that, if a sectional door is to be used, the dock house must be sufficiently high and long to take the door tracks. 

Installation needs to be carefully considered. At many sites, the dock houses are entirely separate and independent of each other because it suits the programme for pouring the floor slab inside the warehouse.  By contrast, they can be installed in multiple units if space between them is limited.

 

Case study

Greggs Birmingham Bakery recently approached Stertil Dock Products to evaluate its distribution operations following the purchase of a new fleet of delivery vehicles. In particular, the bakery’s management was looking to not only streamline loading and unloading activities but to overcome the problem of lorries being damaged by the existing loading dock equipment.

Following a detailed evaluation, Stertil Dock Products proposed replacement of the existing outdated installation with a series of 12 dock houses. This proposal took into account the different shapes and sizes of the bakery’s new 35-strong delivery fleet which includes 18t standard delivery vehicles and articulated lorries. Each dock house features a 6000kg capacity, XP 2518 hydraulic dock leveller. Manufactured from high tensile steel, the leveller incorporates a 600mm telescopic extending lip to ensure precise positioning of the lip onto a vehicle bed and a constant contact rear hinge assembly for the smooth transfer of goods. The accuracy of the lip allows full loading up to the rear of a vehicle and eliminates the possibility of damage to goods during loading and unloading operations. 

To accommodate double deck trailers, the proposal also included the supply of a WI 307 inflatable dock shelter which supports the bakery’s special freezer dock. Mounted directly to the building, this shelter features a system of inflatable head and side air bags to ensure an effective seal between trailer and dock, thereby preserving the internal temperature of the building.

Safety and efficiency at the Greggs Birmingham Bakery site has been further enhanced by the inclusion of various complementary loading bay ancillaries within the Stertil installation. Each dock house includes high visibility LED traffic lights, a push button composite control panel, wheel guides, LED dock lights and PE 450 dock bumpers to prevent damage to the new dock houses and delivery vehicles.

“The new dock houses from Stertil Dock Products have helped make our distribution process slicker and safer,” says Steve Chance, engineering manager at Greggs Birmingham Bakery. “Previous health and safety issues have been resolved and our drivers love the new docks as they have made the loading operation so much easier.”