What is a lowbed?
A lowbed is a trailer with a deck very close to the ground, built for heavy and tall loads. The low deck keeps the total height of a tall machine, such as an excavator or a small crane, lower, and most lowbeds have ramps so the machine can drive on by itself.
What is a flatbed?
A flatbed has a level deck that sits higher than a lowbed. It suits medium loads such as cars, goods, small equipment and light cabins loaded by crane or forklift.
When you need a lowbed
- The machine is heavy: an excavator, wheel loader, dozer or large factory machine.
- The machine is tall: on a flatbed it would exceed the height allowed on roads and under bridges.
- The machine moves by itself on tracks or wheels and can drive up the ramps.
- The load is wide or long and needs a strong, stable deck.
When a flatbed is enough
- The load is light or medium and its loaded height is normal.
- A car or small machine.
- Palletised goods or a small cabin.
Loading is half the job
Most transport problems happen while loading and unloading, not on the road. Equipment that can't move by itself, such as machines, generators, cabins and containers, needs a crane to load it onto the lowbed and a crane to unload it. When the crane and the lowbed come from the same company, the job is one booking and one appointment.
Before you book transport
Have this ready:
- The machine type, approximate weight and size (length, width, height).
- Whether it moves by itself or needs a crane to load.
- The pickup and drop-off locations as map links.
- Whether the access road is narrow or sandy.
