A ‘Straight Lift’ works on the principle of lifting the body clear of the chassis in one movement, deploying the support legs, lowering the lifting equipment and then driving the chassis clear of the body.
Lifting of the body is achieved by using pneumatic lifting assemblies to push the body up or the trucks own air suspension. The chassis specification will dictate the combination of lifting methods used to gain the demounting clearance required.
When picking up the body, location guides are provided to assist the driver position the body accurately on the chassis. Different types of guidance system are provided dependent on the application.
The demountable body is retained on the chassis using four twistlocks, which is the recognised industry standard.
An alternative to an air lift system would be to utilise hydraulics, however in the case of a ‘Straight Lift’ demountable the hydraulic option has fallen out of favour due to its complexity, reliability and cost.
The most common users of demountable systems on our roads are logistics companies distributing goods to high streets the length and breadth of the country, closely followed by manufacturers distributing their own products and retailers delivering their goods to our homes.
Moving away from distribution, there are many other applications where demountables are employed by specialist companies and organisations which include Local Authorities, the Emergency Services, MOD, Hospital Services, Utility Companies, the Entertainment Industry and Environmental Services to name but a few.
There is very little restriction on the style of bodywork that can be accommodated on a demountable system and it would be fair to say that over the years just about every conceivable configuration has been produced in one form or another, therefore if an operator has a requirement that might be considered nonstandard, but where a demountable system would be advantageous, it should be fully investigated and not immediately considered impractical.
The following list of body types have all been used on dual purpose vehicles were interchangeable body styles have been required:
Dry freight van, with or without luton or dropwell. Curtainside. Dropside. Rolling canopy. Flat platform. Refrigerated / insulated. Tipper. Beavertail. Gritter. Gulley emptier. Tanker. Offices. Special equipment bodies. Exhibition units. Cage body. Ground lowering body. Local authority. Emergency services bodies.
And the list goes on and on.
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