Ever have to use a loading bay/ area that was obviously either designed or built by somebody who has never had to use a loading bay/ area ?
I going to nominate two.
The first are the bays at the Bull Ring, B’ham. No problem with the bays themselves, just the fact you have to drag you cargo up a v long ramp to get it to the goods lifts. When you finally get to the lift, you often have to wait for an age to get one that’s free.
The second belongs to the Pavilions Centre also in Birmingham. Seriously restricted turning area littered with concrete columns for the unwary to strike.
The loading bays have been built about 2 inches higher than a standard truck bed, so unless you have adjustable air suspension you cant offload directly off the back of your wagon.
Finally the floor is lopsided so when one side of your tail lift is touching the floor, the other has a two inch gap.
And who thought it would be a good idea to let Joe Public bring his car in to collect bulky items in the same place. Mixing reversing HGVs with The general Public in a confined space. What a great idea!
I would mind so much , but both these are in buildings that were made in the last ten years. You would have though that when building large shopping centres they would have consider how they were going to get the goods in.
Secretelephant:
Ever have to use a loading bay/ area that was obviously either designed or built by somebody who has never had to use a loading bay/ area ?
Yes, too many to recall particular ones. For most of the reasons you could think of, unlevel surface, facing up or down hill, sloping off to the side, making cages do your back in etc etc. Certainly know what you mean.
Makro Norwich, whoever designed the entrance to that place clearly has never driven a truck, its tight enough in a rigid but I have seen many artics stuck there.
Secretelephant:
Ever have to use a loading bay/ area that was obviously either designed or built by somebody who has never had to use a loading bay/ area ?
I going to nominate two.
The first are the bays at the Bull Ring, B’ham. No problem with the bays themselves, just the fact you have to drag you cargo up a v long ramp to get it to the goods lifts. When you finally get to the lift, you often have to wait for an age to get one that’s free.
The second belongs to the Pavilions Centre also in Birmingham. Seriously restricted turning area littered with concrete columns for the unwary to strike.
The loading bays have been built about 2 inches higher than a standard truck bed, so unless you have adjustable air suspension you cant offload directly off the back of your wagon.
Finally the floor is lopsided so when one side of your tail lift is touching the floor, the other has a two inch gap.
And who thought it would be a good idea to let Joe Public bring his car in to collect bulky items in the same place. Mixing reversing HGVs with The general Public in a confined space. What a great idea!
I would mind so much , but both these are in buildings that were made in the last ten years. You would have though that when building large shopping centres they would have consider how they were going to get the goods in.
Little tip for unloading (with tail lift) on a bay that is higher than vehicle bed.
Carry a couple of decent pallets with you and place them on dropped tail lift then raise to bed level. Wheel pallet(to be unloaded)onto tail lift (and empty pallets)then raise to height of loading bay .
Hope you can understand this - finding it difficult to put into words
Remploy in Baglan (Port Talbot) had their loading bay designed for left hookers. The building was built for Remploy from the ground up and they dont even have foreigners go in there so everyone has to blindside onto the bay
But i would say that at least 60% or more loading bays/manouvering areas in this country are designed by clueless Saab driving shirt and tie knobs who have never seen an artic let alone designed the bay/area within their needs/constraints
My nightmare bays are Sainsburys charlton,sainsburys basingstoke (chilled bays) and wincanton luton,all make my heart sink when i see them on the daily run plan.Always seem to get them when it chucking it down and the yard is choas
for shop deliveries, I nominate nearly all Wilkos stores.
Especially doncaster frenchgate, & huddersfield. both of which are underground, & req reverse pillar dodging (usually on the blindside)
and for a special award goes to Tesco, for their Hadfield (doncaster) express store … many have attempted it with a rear steer 30ft trailer and said no way. its a blindside reverse while in a tight ally, you have to trust the judgement of the store staff to guide you in
Reef:
Remploy in Baglan (Port Talbot) had their loading bay designed for left hookers. The building was built for Remploy from the ground up and they dont even have foreigners go in there so everyone has to blindside onto the bay
But i would say that at least 60% or more loading bays/manouvering areas in this country are designed by clueless Saab driving shirt and tie knobs who have never seen an artic let alone designed the bay/area within their needs/constraints
hey i drive a saab, im nto clueless i hate wearing a shirt and tie and havnt done so in about 3 years and i have set foot in an artic
I think the architect has an Eddie Stobart model and prints a scale copy of the plans out. He then sits and plays with them on the desk for 5 minutes and declares them fit for purpose. He then forgets that within 2 weeks of opening the blue pallets will have mated and produced a litter of blue pallets that will continue to breed until some one at Chep realises they are running a little low and sends a truck out hunting for them.
He also forgets that the Biffa driver will dump 4 front load containers right where you need to spin round and then the builders will decide not to accurately measure a flat level loading surface as that would mean two extra passes with the grader and just tarmac over the obvious slope and hope for the best.
i’ve not been driving for long so i struggle on most loading bays. The worst i’ve found is whatmore at altham, woolworths at rochdale and ciba at paisley.
theres an awkward one at Caparo ductile cold rolled mill in Willenhall
you have to reverse in the shutter at a odd angle and then get it round to get the back of your wagon onto the unloading dock , god knows who designed that bay
and theres the tube bay at Ashworths in Radcliffe by Manchester where the shutter only just clears the back of my wagon and thats only 11 foot tall but to get in you have to drop all the air out of the suspension to get out once your unloaded
Reef:
Remploy in Baglan (Port Talbot) had their loading bay designed for left hookers. The building was built for Remploy from the ground up and they dont even have foreigners go in there so everyone has to blindside onto the bay
But i would say that at least 60% or more loading bays/manouvering areas in this country are designed by clueless Saab driving shirt and tie knobs who have never seen an artic let alone designed the bay/area within their needs/constraints
hey i drive a saab, im nto clueless i hate wearing a shirt and tie and havnt done so in about 3 years and i have set foot in an artic
DAFMAD:
For most of the reasons you could think of, unlevel surface, facing up or down hill, sloping off to the side, making cages do your back in etc etc.
You have described my past shifts with the Co-op and Farmfoods to a tee DAFMAD.
Mr B:
i’ve not been driving for long so i struggle on most loading bays. The worst i’ve found is whatmore at altringham, woolworths at rochdale and ciba at paisley.
fun aint it■■? worst place I’ve EVER had the unfortunate pleasure of having to put a 40’ container.
Secretelephant:
I would mind so much , but both these are in buildings that were made in the last ten years. You would have though that when building large shopping centres they would have consider how they were going to get the goods in.
Ahhh, I see your problem now - you’re looking at this logically.
The problem we have as delivery drivers is that the stores/ shopping centres are designed to fit into a space which will be conducive to attracting shoppers. So the design line follows as design the store > design the car parking to get huge numbers of customers in > er oh zb how are we going to get the goods in? Just give them a (small) space there, that should be big enough
Then, as has been mentioned, all the rest of the crap goes into the yard (in all the wrong places) and Bob’s your uncle - the perfect design/ a pile of zb, depending where you’re looking at it from.
peirre:
and for a special award goes to Tesco, for their Hadfield (doncaster) express store … many have attempted it with a rear steer 30ft trailer and said no way. its a blindside reverse while in a tight ally, you have to trust the judgement of the store staff to guide you in
Agreed. I went there in a rigid when it opened and towed my backside off. Couldn’t believe it when the staff told me that Tosco would be delivering in artics.
But that is a store that Tosco bought, whereas Clowne, near Chesterfield is one that was designed new.
Huge store with a car park big enough for the whole town and a loading bay round the back which is a nightmare to negotiate. At the entrance you must get over to the right leaving only 2 inches gap between you and the wall and drive through the gates, for about 20 yards, right up to another wall and then full left hand lock to get it round because whilst the bay sticks out into the yard, the wall turns left and comes back on you. If you get it right your trailer sneaks past the stuck out bay by about 2 - 3 inches. Then screw it right to line up for the bay. When leaving, the yard is designed in a triangle and is so small that you must screw it round anti-clockwise (quite a few have gone clockwise and got stuck) and get over to the left to go through the exit opposite to how you came in.
Mr B:
i’ve not been driving for long so i struggle on most loading bays. The worst i’ve found is whatmore at altringham, woolworths at rochdale and ciba at paisley.
fun aint it■■? worst place I’ve EVER had the unfortunate pleasure of having to put a 40’ container.
I agree with you about the woolies job.I was on agency for them out of rochdale a good few yrs ago.The store bays were a nightmare,they had special 20ft trls for some of them.
